Sulindac and a cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor, etodolac, increase APC mRNA in the colon of rats treated with azoxymethane

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Abstract
BACKGROUND Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have been reported to protect against the development of colon cancer. However, the mechanism(s) by which NSAIDs exert their effects is not clear. AIMS The aim of this study was to examine the effects of NSAIDs on mRNA expression of tumour suppressor adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) gene in rat colon mucosa. METHODS Starting at six weeks of age, three groups of rats (groups 1, 2, and 3) were treated with azoxymethane (AOM), a colon specific carcinogen, and another three groups (groups 4, 5, and 6) were not given AOM. Groups 2 and 3 were given 10 mg/kg of sulindac or etodolac, respectively, three times weekly during the experiment. Groups 4 and 5 were also given sulindac or etodolac, respectively, in the same manner as in groups 2 and 3. Group 6 (untreated control) was not given any agent (AOM or NSAIDs). At 10 weeks of age, preneoplastic lesions (aberrant crypt foci (ACF)) induced by AOM in the colon were counted, and the level of expression of APC mRNA in the colonic mucosa was estimated by the reverse transcription-competitive polymerase chain reaction method and northern blot analysis. RESULTS Mean occurrence of ACF in rats in groups 2 and 3 was reduced to approximately 50% of that in group 1. The level of APC mRNA expression in group 1 (AOM alone) was lower than that in group 6 (untreated control) (pCONCLUSIONS Both sulindac and etodolac reduced the occurrence of ACF and induced an increase in APC mRNA in rat colon mucosa.