Abstract
Epidemiological studies have correlated elevated concentrations drinking water nitrate with an increased risk of developing colorectal cancer (CRC). Nitrate is rapidly absorbed in vivo, where 0.02 - 0.04% is converted to N-nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA), a class 2A carcinogen. How such environmental contaminants affect CRC cells is not well understood.
This project investigated the potential for nitrate, nitrite, and NDEA at concentrations relevant to drinking water, to affect CRC cell viability in vitro. The effect of NDEA on CYP2E1 expression was also assessed as a source of reactive oxygen species which may serve as a mechanism of NDEA toxicity.