Depurinating estrogen-DNA adducts, generators of cancer initiation: their minimization leads to cancer prevention.

Depurinating estrogen-DNA adducts, generators of cancer initiation: their minimization leads to cancer prevention. Clin Transl Med. 2016 Dec;5(1):12 Authors: Cavalieri EL, Rogan EG Abstract Estrogens can initiate cancer by reacting with DNA. Specific metabolites of endogenous estrogens, the catechol estrogen-3,4-quinones, react with DNA to form depurinating estrogen-DNA adducts. Loss of these adducts leaves apurinic sites in the DNA, generating mutations that can lead to the initiation of cancer. A variety of endogenous and exogenous factors can disrupt estrogen homeostasis, which is the normal balance between estrogen activating and protective enzymes. In fact, if estrogen metabolism becomes unbalanced and generates excessive catechol estrogen 3,4-quinones, formation of depurinating estrogen-DNA adducts increases and the risk of initiating cancer is greater. The levels of depurinating estrogen-DNA adducts are high in women diagnosed with breast cancer and those at high risk for the disease. High levels of depurinating estrogen-DNA adducts before the presence of breast cancer indicates that adduct formation is a critical factor in breast cancer initiation. Women with thyroid or ovarian cancer also have high levels of estrogen-DNA adducts, as do men with prostate cancer or non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Depurinating estrogen-DNA adducts are initiators of many prevalent types of human cancer. These findings and other discoveries led to the reco...
Source: Clinical Prostate Cancer - Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Tags: Clin Transl Med Source Type: research