Effects of prochloraz on DNA damage,lipid peroxidation and antioxidant system in vitro

Prochloraz is a broad-spectrum contact imidazol fungicide used against several diseases in wheat, barley and oleaginous plants but also for treatment of flower production. Although prochloraz has endocrine disrupting and hepatocarcinogenic effects, there is lack of data on toxic effects of prochloraz. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the DNA damage effects of prochloraz in NRK-52E cells by using Ames and Comet assay. By using a standard alkaline Comet assay procedure, there was no DNA damage observed after 24?h prochloraz exposure. It also showed that prochloraz caused neither base-pair substitution nor frame shift mutations by using TA98, TA100 strains, respectively, with/without metabolic activation in Ames assay. Both Comet and Ames assays, the exposure concentrations were 12.5, 25, 50 and 100?µM. IC₅₀ value of prochloraz was determined as 110.76?µM in NRK-52E cells by MTT cytotoxicity test. Also, we evaluated possible effects of prochloraz on lipid peroxidation, reduced glutathione (GSH), oxidized glutathione (GSSG) and antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and glutathione reductase (GSH-Rd) in NRK-52E cells at 1–50?µM concentrations. Prochloraz induced lipid peroxidation and altered glutathione contents and antioxidant enzyme activities in NRK-52E cells. Our results indicated that prochloraz showed no evidence of mutagenicity and DNA damage; however, some alterations were observed on lipid peroxidation and antioxidant systems in prochloraz treatment.     

Marijuana and Alcohol Use and Attempted Smoking Cessation in Adolescent Boys and Girls

ABSTRACT. Background: This study sought to determine the relationship between the frequency of current marijuana and alcohol use and cigarette quit attempts in male and female adolescent smokers. Methods: Data from a cross-sectional survey of health behaviors in high-school-aged adolescents were analyzed. Current cigarette smokers (n = 804) who reported use of at least 1 cigarette in the past month were divided into those with and without a history of at least 1 quit attempt (a self-reported episode of trying to “stop smoking”). Logistic regression models were fit to describe the association between the frequency of marijuana/alcohol use and a history of cigarette quit attempts. Results: Among the total sample, higher-frequency marijuana use (more than 6 times in the past 30 days) and frequent binge drinking (more than 5 days of binge drinking in the past 30 days) decreased the odds of having a past cigarette quit attempt (higher-frequency marijuana: adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 0.56, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.36–0.86; frequent binge drinking: AOR = 0.49, 95% CI = 0.29–0.83). A significant gender interaction was observed for the relationship between higher-frequency marijuana use and a history of cigarette quit attempts (P = .03), with decreased odds in boys (AOR = 0.41, 95% CI = 0.22–0.77) but not in girls (AOR = 0.71, 95% CI = 0.37–1.33). Conclusions: Adolescent smokers who report higher-frequency marijuana use or frequent binge drinking have a decreased likelihood of a history of a cigarette quit attempt. The gender-related association between higher-frequency marijuana use and a history of quit attempts suggests that boys with greater substance use may need particularly intensive support to initiate quit attempts.