Ausência de efeito genotóxico induzido por esteróides anabolizantes em indivíduos fisiculturistas / Lack of genotoxicity induced by steroids anabolic in bodybuilding practicers

Os esteróides anabolizantes vêm sendo utilizados indiscriminadamente com a finalidade de aumentar amassa muscular e melhorar o desempenho em competições esportivas. No entanto, os efeitos dessesesteróides sobre a saúde humana foram pouco avaliados. O presente estudo propôs verificar o potencialgenotóxico de esteróides anabolizantes em indivíduos fisiculturistas utilizando o teste do cometa, capazde detectar lesões primárias no DNA. Para isso, foram coletadas amostras de sangue periférico de 63voluntários, sendo 23 praticantes do fisiculturismo não competitivo e usuários de esteróidesanabolizantes; 20 fisiculturistas não usuários dos esteróides e 20 indivíduos sedentários, que nãopraticavam exercício físico rotineiro (grupo controle). Nos protocolos de tratamento utilizados pelosusuários de esteróides estavam inclusos: o stanozolol, o decanoato de nandrolona, o cipionato detestosterona e a oximetolona. Os resultados mostraram que não houve diferença estatisticamentesignificante (P > 0,05) nos níveis de danos no DNA (“tail moment”) entre os grupos avaliados. Destaforma, conclui-se que o treinamento físico de força muscular, bem como o uso de esteróides anabolizantesdurante o treinamento.

Anabolic steroids have been used in order to increase muscular mass and to improve the performance insporting competitions. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the genotoxic effect of anabolicsteroids in bodybuilders, using the comet assay that is able to detect primary DNA damage. Peripheralblood samples were collected from 63 volunteers: 23 bodybuilders and anabolic steroids-users; 20 bodybuilders-non-steroids users; and 20 sedentary individuals, who did not practice any physical exercise(control group). The used anabolic steroids included: stanozolol, nandrolone decanoate, testosteronecypionate, oxymetholone and a combination of testosterone decanoate, testosterone phenylpropianate,testosterone isocaproate and testosterone propianate. The results showed no statistically significantdifference (P > 0.05) in the level of DNA damage (tail moment) among the groups. In conclusion, theseresults suggest that the anabolic steroids, as well as resistance training (bodybuilding) did not induceincrease of DNA damage in peripheral blood leukocytes.

Viable human buccal mucosa cells do not yield typical nucleoids: impacts on the single-cell gel electrophoresis/Comet assay.

Buccal mucosa (BM) cells have been used in human biomonitoring studies for detecting DNA adducts and chromosomal damage in an epithelial cell population. In the present study, we have investigated if human BM cells are suitable for use in the single-cell gel electrophoresis (SCGE)/Comet assay as an approach for estimating the exposure of epithelial cells to DNA-damaging agents. Our results indicate that only a few cells from BM cell samples yield comets that can be analyzed by current methods, and that the yield of cells with comets is independent of the percentage of viable BM cells in the sample. Data generated after enzymatic enrichment of viable cells and immunomagnetic separation of epithelial cells suggest that most of the BM cells that do form comets are probably leukocytes. Moreover, by reevaluating specific cells after running the Comet assay, we found that viable epithelial BM cells give rise to atypical comets that are not included in the analysis. Comparing DNA migration patterns between small groups of smokers and nonsmokers indicated that long-term smoking had no effect on the subpopulation of cells that yield typical comets. Our results indicate that the SCGE assay, as it is commonly performed, may not be useful for genotoxicity monitoring in human epithelial BM cells.

DNA damage in cytologically normal urothelial cells of patients with a history of urothelial cell carcinoma.

In order to determine if patients with a history of previous urothelial cell carcinoma (UCC) but with current normal urinary cytology have DNA damage in urothelial cells, the single-cell gel electrophoresis (comet) assay was conducted with cells obtained by urinary bladder washings from 44 patients (28 with a history of previous UCC). Increased DNA damage was observed in cytologically "normal" urothelial cells of patients with a history of UCC when compared with referents with no similar history and after correcting the data for smoking status and age (P < 0.018). Increased DNA damage also correlated with the highest tumor grade, irrespective of time or course of the disease after clinical intervention (Kendall tau correlation, 0.37, P = 0.016). Moreover, aneuploidy, as assessed by DNA content ratio (DCR; 75th/25th percentile of total DNA fluorescence of 50 comets/patient) was unaltered by smoking status, but increased with UCC grade: 1.39 +/- 0.12 (median +/- 95% confidence interval; referents); 1.43 +/- 0.11 (Grade I UCC; P = 0.264, against referents); 1.49 +/- 0.16 (Grade II UCC; P = 0.057); 1.57 +/- 0.16 (Grade III UCC; P = 0.003). Micronucleated urothelial cells (MNC) were also scored on Giemsa-stained routine cytological smears and were found not to correlate with DNA damage or DCR. MNC frequencies were higher for patients with a history of UCC and/or smoking than referents with neither history, but there was no statistical difference between groups. Taken together, these results suggest that the normal-appearing urothelium of patients resected for UCC still harbor genetically unstable cells.