Protective Effect of Antler in Experimental Colon Carcinogenesis

There are epidemiological evidences that the population with high fecal ${\beta}-glucuronidase$ activity has greater risk of colon cancer than the population with low fecal ${\beta}-glucuronidase$. This relationship was investigated by using the mouse-dimethylhydrazine colon carcinogenesis model and the extract of antler which was a ${\beta}-glucuronidase$ inhibitor. Mice with low fecal ${\beta}-glucuronidase$ activity induced by administration of water and Folch's fraction of antler had significantly fewer aberrant crypts after injections of 1,2-dimethylhydrazine (DMH) than mice treated with DMH alone. The result supports the hypothesis that the inhibitor of ${\beta}-glucuronidase$ such as antler extract can protect an animal against the induction of colon cancer.