Rapid High-Performance Liquid Chromatographic Method for Detection of Interindividual Differences in Carcinogen Metabolism

This study demonstrated that human hair follicles could be used to assess carcinogen metabolism, specifically focusing on benzo[a]pyrene (BP) and its metabolites. Twelve volunteers used a coal tar-containing shampoo for 4 days, resulting in increased enzyme activity related to carcinogen metabolism in most subjects. The study found significant interindividual variation in basal enzyme activity and showed that enzyme activity could be inhibited by imidazole compounds like clotrimazole and ketoconazole. These findings suggested that hair follicles are a viable tissue for studying carcinogen metabolism and that imidazole compounds might be effective anticarcinogens.