CHED 207 |
| It is estimated that 10 million Americans take chromium(III) dietary supplements, of which chromium picolinate (CrPic) is the most popular. Chromium dietary supplements are not regulated by the FDA in terms of safety or efficacy. Previous work in our laboratory has shown that CrPic is clastogenic and mutagenic in standard genotoxicity assays, and the mutation spectrum at the hprt locus has been characterized. Current work in our lab is testing the hypothesis that if CrPic is clastogenic and mutagenic in cultured cells, then it should cause direct DNA damage. This hypothesis is being tested by identifying DNA lesions through single cell gel electrophoresis (the comet assay) and a DNA crosslinking assay that measures the fluorescence of denatured DNA. Results have confirmed the presence of DNA strand breaks, oxidative damage and DNA crosslinks. However, Cr-DNA adducts were not a major type of lesion formed under these conditions. CrPic was also more cytotoxic in CHO cells that were deficient in DNA repair. These data support our hypothesis that CrPic can cause direct DNA damage in cultured cells. Therefore, further study is needed to verify the safety of CrPic for human consumption. |
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Undergraduate Research Poster Session
2:30 PM-4:30 PM, Monday, August 20, 2007 BCEC -- Exhibit Hall - B2, Poster
Division of Chemical Education |