Oral exposure to environmental cyanobacteria toxins: Implications for cancer risk.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Areca nut/betel quid (AN/BQ) chewing, a prevalent practice in parts of the Pacific and Asia, is an independent cause of cancers of the oral cavity and esophagus and may be linked to liver cancer. The mechanisms of AN/BQ-associated carcinogenesis are unclear. In a Guam population, we previously demonstrated that AN/BQ chewing alters the oral bacterial microbiome including in chewers with oral premalignant lesions. Enrichment of specific taxa, including Cyanobacteria, was observed.

Objectives

We undertook an investigation to evaluate Areca catechu and/or Piper betle plants as potential sources of Cyanobacteria and cyanotoxins in AN/BQ chewers in Guam.

Methods

We evaluated bacterial 16S rRNA with Illumina MiSeq in 122 oral samples and 30 Areca catechu nut and

SUBMITTER: Hernandez BY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7870584 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature