Micronucleated Erythrocytes in Peripheral Blood from Neonate Rats Exposed by Breastfeeding to Cyclophosphamide, Colchicine, or Cytosine-Arabinoside

Genotoxic exposure to chemical substances is common, and nursing mothers could transmit harmful substances or their metabolites to their offspring through breast milk. We explored the possibility of determining genotoxic effects in the erythrocytes of breastfeeding rat pups whose mothers received a genotoxic compound while nursing. Ten groups of female rats and five pups per dam were studied. The control group received sterile water, and the experimental groups received one of three different doses of cyclophosphamide, colchicine, or cytosine-arabinoside. Blood smears were prepared from samples taken from each dam and pup every 24 h for six days. There were increased numbers of micronucleated erythrocytes (MNEs) and micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes (MNPCEs) in the samples from pups in the experimental groups (P<0.02) and increased MNPCE frequencies in the samples from the dams (P<0.05). These results demonstrate the vertical transmission of the genotoxic effect of the compounds tested. In conclusion, assessing MNEs in breastfeeding neonate rats to assess DNA damage may be a useful approach for identifying genotoxic compounds and/or cytotoxic effects. This strategy could help in screening for therapeutic approaches that are genotoxic during the lactation stage and these assessments might also be helpful for developing preventive strategies to counteract harmful effects

SOD2 Gene Variants (rs4880 and rs5746136) and Their Association with Breast Cancer Risk

The superoxide dismutase (SOD) is the principal antioxidant defense system in the body that is activated by a reactive oxygen species. Some variants of the SOD2 gene have been associated with cancer. The rs4880 variant was determined by PCR real-time and the rs5746136 variant by PCR-RFLP in healthy subjects and in breast cancer (BC) patients. The rs4880 and rs5746136 variants were associated with BC susceptibility when BC patients and the control group were compared for the CT, TT, CTCC, and the T alleles (p &lt; 0.05). The CT genotype of the rs4880 variant showed significant statistical differences in patients and controls aged &le; 45 years old, and with hormonal consumption (p &lt; 0.05). The rs4880 variant was associated with BC patients with CTTT genotype and obesity, the presence of DM2-SAH, and a non-chemotherapy response (p &lt; 0.05). Additionally, the rs5746136 variant was associated with susceptibility to BC with Ki-67 (&ge;20%), luminal A type BC, and a chemotherapy partial response (p &lt; 0.05) in BC patients who carry TT, TC, and CTTT genotypes, respectively. The haplotype T/T (OR 1.98; 95% CI 1.20&ndash;3.26, p = 0.005) was observed to be a risk factor for BC. The rs4880 and rs5746136 variants in the SOD2 gene were associated with BC susceptibility