Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, ROC.
J Anal Toxicol. 2010 Jul-Aug;34(6):325-31. doi: 10.1093/jat/34.6.325.
Chewing betel quid is a common habit in Taiwan and associated with the risk of oral cancer. Betel quid contains arecoline and arecaidine, which may serve as the exposure biomarkers of a chewing habit. We developed a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method for the quantitative analysis of blood arecoline and arecaidine. Because 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OH-dG) level in urine is only one early health marker of carcinogenesis, we also examined its association with chewing habit. We found a significant positive correlation between the quantities of betel quid used before the day of drawing blood and arecoline [(Spearman correlation coefficient (r) = 0.81; p value < 0.01) or arecaidine levels (r = 0.86; p value < 0.01)]. Habitual use quantity (quids/day) showed moderate correlation with both arecoline (r = 0.52; p value < 0.05) and arecaidine concentrations (r = 0.51; p value < 0.05). However, there were no significant correlations between total chewing years and concentrations of arecoline and arecaidine in serum or 8-OH-dG in urine. In conclusion, serum arecoline and arecaidine levels are measurable and good indicators for recent betel quid use.
咀嚼槟榔在台湾是一种常见的习惯，与口腔癌的风险有关。槟榔含有槟榔碱和槟榔次碱，它们可能是咀嚼习惯的暴露生物标志物。我们开发了一种液相色谱-串联质谱法，用于定量分析血液中的槟榔碱和槟榔次碱。由于尿液中 8-羟基脱氧鸟苷（8-OH-dG）水平只是致癌作用的一个早期健康标志物，我们还研究了它与咀嚼习惯的关系。我们发现，在采血前一天使用的槟榔数量与槟榔碱（Spearman 相关系数（r）=0.81；p 值<0.01）或槟榔次碱水平（r = 0.86；p 值<0.01）呈显著正相关。习惯性使用量（每口槟榔的数量）与槟榔碱（r = 0.52；p 值<0.05）和槟榔次碱浓度（r = 0.51；p 值<0.05）呈中度相关。然而，总咀嚼年数与血清中槟榔碱和槟榔次碱的浓度以及尿液中 8-OH-dG 之间没有显著相关性。总之，血清中槟榔碱和槟榔次碱的水平是可测量的，是近期咀嚼槟榔的良好指标。
