Age-Related NADH Oxidase (arNOX). Potential Link between Cancer and Reduced Cardiovascular Risk

arNOX, an age-related NADH oxidase, has been shown to play a role in the formation of the autophagosome. The role of autophagy in tumorigenesis and tumor proliferation led to the hypothesis that abnormal arNOX levels might play a role in the pathology of cancer. Serum samples from cancer patients and age- and gender-matched healthy controls were assayed to measure arNOX activity by a standard assay involving measurements of superoxide production based on the reduction of ferricyanide c by superoxide monitored from the increase in absorbance at 550 nm with reference at 540 nm. Superoxide dismutase was added to the end of the assay to ensure return of the rate of ferricytochrome c reduction to the base line. Cancer and cardiovascular diseases are inversely correlated. Similarly, arNOX levels were decreased in cancer patients when compared to non-cancer control subjects while high arNOX levels have been implicated as an important cause of LDL oxidation and increased risk of cardiovascular disease. These findings may help further the understanding of the pathologies of cancer and cardiovascular disease and have implications for risk assessment for both diseases as well as for future therapeutic intervention strategies.