Ácido fólico: efeitos paradoxais na promoção da hepatocarcinogênese em ratos

BASSOLI, B. K. Folic acid: paradoxical effects during promotion of hepatocarcinogenesis in rats. 2009. 158 f. Tese (Doutorado em Ciência dos Alimentos Nutrição Experimental) Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, 2009. Folic acid (FA) supplementation shows chemopreventive effects, however, it may increase the risk of development and accelerate cancer progression in case of high doses or after preneoplastic lesions (PNL) are established. FA is essential on de novo synthesis of purine and thymidalate and, consequently, on DNA synthesis, replication and repair, cell proliferation and apoptosis. Thus, its deficiency may cause DNA damage and replication and repair mistakes, important processes on carcinogenesis, where cells present high replication rates and accelerated division, and is possible that supplementation modulates these processes. Besides, as FA has a central role on methyl group metabolism, it may have effects on hepatocarcinogenesis peculiar events such as DNA global hypomethylation and on the increased expression of proto-oncogenes like c-myc. Objecting the evaluation of FA effects during hepatocarcinogenesis promotion in Wistar rats, the “Resistant Hepatocyte” model was developed and water (0.25 mL / 100 g BW / day) or FA (0.16; 0.32; or 0.64 mg / 100 g BW / day) were supplemented daily by gavage for 5 weeks. Then, hepatic PNL detected by macroscopy and microscopy (GST-P), cell proliferation (BrdU) and apoptosis (fluorescence microscopy) on surrounding tissue, persistent and remodeling PNL, DNA damage (alcaline Comet assay), DNA global methylation pattern (Dot Blot) and c-myc expression (RT-PCR) specifically in microdissected PNL were evaluated. Even though FA treatment was not able to change incidence and multiplicity of PNL, the treatment with 0.32 mg / 100 g of FA increased the percentage of lesions ≥ 1 mm whereas with 0.64 mg / 100 g of FA diminished the percentage of these lesions, compaired to the water group (p<0.05). Similarly, it could be observed in PNL positive GST-P analysis that FA 0.32 mg / 100 g enhanced and FA 0.64 mg / 100 g inhibited the carcinogenic process, although it was not possible to detect significant differences on number, size and area of liver section occupied by GST-P positive PNL. Despite the fact that PNL development was not significantly modulated by FA, FA 0.32 and 0.64 mg / 100 g dosages inhibited cell proliferation on persistent PNL (p<0.05). The apoptotic body count allowed to identify a possible dosage-dependent apoptosis inhibition on persistent and remodeling PNL (p>0.05). According to the analysis of comet length, the hepatocarcinogenesis model increased DNA damage but FA showed lack of effect on this process (p>0.05). DNA global methylation pattern and c-myc expression in microdissected PNL were not significantly altered by treatment with different dosages of FA, although a trend towards promotion of hypomethylation and increase on c-myc expression was observed. Altogether, the obtained results helped to characterize the paradoxical action (both inhibitory and promoting) that FA has on carcinogenesis promotion step, in such a way that the dosage and the stage of neoplastic development in which supplementation begins seems to be critical, highlighting the necessity of caution with FA fortification, one of the biggest public health interventions taken that exposes the population to high concentrations of synthetic FA. Key-words: Folic acid. Hepatocarcinogenesis. DNA. Methylation. Genic Expression.