A Study of Anaerobic Bacteria from the Patients with Nasopharyngeal Cancer or Lung Cancer in Hohg Kong

1990 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary

• Project/Area Number: 02042001
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for international Scientific Research
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: Special Cancer Research
• Research Institution: Gifu University
• Principal Investigator: SHIMIZU Hiroyuki Gifu University School of Medicine, Professor, 医学部, 教授 (90073139)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): HO John H. C. Hong Kong Baptist Hospital, Consultant Doctor, 顧問医 ; KOO Linda C. Hong Kong University School of Medicine, Lecturer, 医学部, 講師 ; FUJIKI Hirota National Cancer Center Research Institute, Div. Chief, 研究所, 部長 (60124426) ; MATSUKI Hideaki Tokai University School of Medicine, Associate Professor, 医学部, 助教授 (90096264) ; WATANABE Kunitomo Gifu University School of Medicine, Associate Professor, 医学部, 助教授 (70108067)
• Project Period (FY): 1990
• Keywords: Lung cancer / Nasopharyngeal cancer / Hong Kong / Bacteria / Promotion

Research Abstract

It is well known that the incidence rates of nasopharyngeal cancer and female lung cancer in Hong Kong, although proportion of female smokers in Hong Kong is less than that in Japan or infection rate of EB virus is high and almost the same in Hong Kong and Japan. There may be other modifing factors like promoters specific to those cancer in Hong Kong.
We observed protein kinase C activity of bacteria from nasopharynx of the 5 patients with nasopharyngeal cancer and their controls. The bacteria were cultivated in 37^0C for 48 hours in aerobic and anaerobic conditions. The mean protein kinase C activity for bacteria cultivated in aerobic and anaerobic conditions from the patients was 20.0 and 13.2mU/mug. The mean activity for bacteria cultivated in aerobic and anaerobic condition from the controols was 5.18 and 10.4mU/mug.
We also obtained sputum from three Hong Kong women who complain chronic cough and sputum, and cultivated the materials in 37^0C for 48 hours in aerobic and anaerobic conditions. The bacteria cultivated in aerobic condition had no protein kinase activity, which the promoter like Okadaic acid shows. However, the bacteria cultivated in anaerobic condition from the two women showed strong protein kinase activity. These findings suggest that bacteria which can grow in anaerobic condition may have some role in the etiology of cancer as a promoter. The bacteria was identified as Streptococcus sanguis.