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- Large
American Chemical Council Grant to Dr. Karen Brown and Prof Peter Farmer.
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- May,
2003
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Ethylene oxide is a widely used intermediate in the
chemical industry and is also formed endogenously from the metabolic oxidation
of ethylene, a chemical which is generated during normal physiological
processes.
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Although ethylene oxide is thought to be a human carcinogen,
epidemiological studies provide conflicting evidence regarding its ability to
induce human cancers. Consequently, there is a need to assess the risks
associated with low dose occupational exposures to this chemical. Ethylene oxide
reacts with DNA,
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forming N7-(2-hydroxyethyl)-
- 2’-deoxyguanosine adducts (7HEG),
which can be used as a biomarker of exposure and potential cancer risk.
- Prof
Farmer and Dr. Brown in the Leicester CBPG were successful in attracting a grant
worth $900,000 from the American Chemical Council, for 3 years starting from 1st
Sept 2003, in order to elucidate the detection of ethylene oxide DNA adducts
including 7HEG using 14C and 3H-accelerator mass spectrometry, an incredibly
sensitive method available
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- for detecting and quantifying low concentrations of
radioisotopes with high precision perticularly sensitive way of detection. The ultimate goal of this project is to identify sources of endogenous
adduct formation and determine the relative contribution of low dose ethylene
oxide exposures to the overall level of 7HEG adducts formed in vivo. The work
will aid in assessing the risk to humans exposed to this chemical.
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- New
research grant for the evaluation of resveratrol
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- September,
2002
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- The Cancer
Biomarker and Prevention Group of the University of Leicester has been successful in receiving a
major research grant for the preclinical
and clinical evaluation of resveratrol, a natural
compound found in red wine. The US National Cancer Institute (NCI), the major US government body which funds and coordinates cancer research, awarded
1.7 million US dollars to a collaborative consortium consisting of
the Leicester Group and the Comprehensive Cancer Centre at the University of Michigan.
This is the first time the NCI has funded a research group
outside America for the early clinical development of a drug that
may prevent cancer.
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- Resveratrol
is a natural agent found in grapes, peanuts and several berries. It is present in fruit juice from these berries and in wine.
Consumption of resveratrol has been proposed as one possible
explanation for the low incidence of cardiovascular disease in
Southern European countries with high red wine consumption, and
resveratrol has been shown to possess anti-inflammatory and
anti-cancer activity in experimental models.
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- Since
resveratrol may be of value in preventing cancer, the NCI are
funding early clinical studies of pure resveratrol capsules in
healthy volunteers and patients with early cancer. These studies will be conducted in Leicester and at the
University of Michigan. The principal investigators, in the UK are Professors W Steward, A
Gescher and P Farmer and Drs D Boocock, D Hemingway and R Sharma.
- Professor Will Steward has said
- “Over
the past four years we have built up the largest integrated cancer
prevention group in Europe. Laboratory-based scientists and clinicians work closely together to develop novel
drugs which have promise for reducing the risk of developing cancer. This award is a major advance and we hope it will enable us
to take resveratrol forward to become a valuable agent to reduce the
number
of people who develop cancer in the future.”
- Over
the recent years, the Leicester team has been involved with the
early clinical development of the potential cancer preventive agent
curcumin, derived from the dietary spice turmeric. Encouraging results are being obtained from this.
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- The Cancer Biomarker and Prevention Group are also planning
early clinical development of other dietary constituents that may
help in the fight against cancer.
- The
principal investigator in the USA, Professor Dean Brenner, said
- “the
award of this competitive grant by the US NCI is a major achievement.
In the USA, such awards are given only to teams who are able
to successfully integrate their laboratory research scientists with
clinical investigators, and awards made to teams outside the US are
rare. Foreign awards are given only to groups who are able to
provide expertise not available in the USA.
The successful completion of this contract signifies that the
University of Leicester group is considered a world class
translational research group and I am thrilled to be able to work
closely with such an outstanding group.”
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