Lipid peroxidation product
acrolein, well-known
pollutant in tobacco and automotive
smoke, accumulates in vivo bound to
proteins. It suppresses p53 synthesis acting as potent carcinogenic factor for oral, respiratory and bladder
carcinomas, while its possible association with colon
carcinogenesis was not studied so far. We used genuine
monoclonal antibody to evaluate immunohistochemical distribution of
acrolein-
protein adducts in 113 human colon tumours. The presence of
acrolein-
protein adducts was increasing with respect to colon
carcinogenesis, from moderate appearance in tubular and villotubular low-grade
adenomas to abundant and diffuse distribution in high-grade villotubular
adenomas and Dukes A
carcinomas. However, in advanced Dukes B and C
carcinomas acrolein was hardly noticed, although, its
protein adducts were found abundant in non-malignant colon epithelium of these patients. There was no relationship between p53 and
acrolein distribution. According to these findings,
acrolein seems to be lipid peroxidation product associated with transition from benign into malignant colon tumours.