Modulation of pre-neoplastic biomarkers induced by sequential aflatoxin B 1 and fumonisin B 1 exposure in F344 rats treated with UPSN clay

Abstract Populations consuming aflatoxin (AF) and fumonisin (FN)-contaminated foods may be at increased risk for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and developmental disorders; consequently, development of intervention strategies to reduce AF/FN-induced liver disease and adverse health effects in humans could be very useful. Calcium montmorillonite clay (NovaSil) has been shown to absorb AF in vitro , in multiple animal models, as well as in human studies. In the present study, we aimed to evaluate whether uniform particle size NovaSil (UPSN) possessed an ability to modulate the co-carcinogenic potentials of aflatoxin B 1 (AFB 1 ) and fumonisin B 1 (FB 1 ) in F344 rats. Sequential treatment of FB 1 following AFB 1 synergistically induces preneoplastic alterations as well as liver damage, indicating that AFB 1 acts as an initiator while FB 1 as a promoter in the carcinogenesis model, confirming findings from previous studies. The enterosorbent agent UPSN clay at dose of up to 0.5% in diet was shown to be effective in modulating the toxicity and carcinogenicity of co-exposure to AFB 1 and FB 1 , as demonstrated by significant reduction in number and size of hepatic GST-P + foci, in alterations indicative of liver toxicity, and in levels of AFB 1 and FB 1 biomarkers.