Salivary Arecoline and Arecaidine in current and past Arecanut users

Abstract

Aim or Purpose: Arecanut (AN) alkaloid Arecoline (AC) is cytotoxic, genotoxic, mutagenic, induces proinflammatory and oncogenic cytokines. AN users have a high risk of developing Oral Submucous Fibrosis (OSMF) and Oral Cancer. Salivary AC can be measured 1 month respectively] and 30 age and sex matched Controls(C) (never ever users of AN) were recruited after ethical clearance and informed consent. History of any malignancy and systemic condition/ medications that affect salivary flow and composition were exclusion criteria. 2 ml of unstimulated and stimulated whole saliva was collected by spitting method (2-5 minutes), centrifuged, aliquoted and stored at -80°C till further evaluation by liquid chromatography coupled tandem mass spectroscopy (LC-MS-MS) method. Results: The mean levels of AC and AD were significantly higher in CAN as compared to PAN and C (p=0.000) and significantly higher in unstimulated as compared to stimulated saliva (p=0.000). AD was detected in 23.3 % of C. The mean level of AD in unstimulated saliva was significantly higher in PAN as compared to C (p=0.009). Conclusions: Salivary AC detected in both PAN and CAN is a risk factor for OSMF and oral cancer. Salivary AD is better biomarker than AC for validating self -reported AN abstinence.