Avmacol is an over-the-counter dietary supplement containing broccoli seed and sprout extracts in tablet form, hypothesized to activate protective cellular pathways including detoxication. In this study, healthy volunteers will take 3 days of Avmacol in order to evaluate both bioavailability and its bioactivity in cheek cells.
Avmacol is an over-the counter dietary supplement containing broccoli seed and sprout extracts in tablet form. Natural plant substances within Avmacol, called phytochemicals, are hypothesized to stimulate the body's own defense mechanisms against toxic substances commonly encountered in the environment, such as air pollution and tobacco smoke. The purpose of this study is twofold: 1) to assess the protective effects of Avmacol on the mucosa (cheek cells) of healthy volunteers, and 2) to assess the collection of cheek cells by scraping, as a less invasive method of studying drug effects in the body compared to drawing blood or a tissue biopsy. Ultimately, these results will be used to design a larger study of Avmacol in patients with tobacco-related head and neck cancer. Avmacol will be studied as a way to possibly prevent a second cancer from developing in these patients.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NA
Purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
10
Avmacol is an over-the-counter mixture of broccoli seed and sprout extracts in tablet form to promote detoxification. These tablets contain natural substances that stimulate the body's own defense mechanisms against toxic substances commonly encountered in the environment, such as air pollution and tobacco smoke.
Number of buccal (cheek) cells collected by participants versus a trained professional
Number of buccal cells collected by cytobrush during week 1 (days 1-5) of the study
Time frame: 5 days
Induction of NRF2 pathway transcripts in buccal cells by Avmacol
Quantitative mRNA for NQO1 in buccal cells at baseline (day 1) vs. buccal cells taken during the 3 days of Avmacol (days 2-4), and the day after Avmacol (day 5)
Time frame: 5 days
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