Associations of plasma aflatoxin B-1-albumin adduct level with plasma selenium level and genetic polymorphisms of glutathione S-transferase M1 and T1

Mortality from hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is extraordinarily high in Ma tzu, an island off the coast of Southeastern China. To investigate factors associated with plasma aflatoxin B-1 (AFB(1))-albumin adduct level, we stud ied 304 healthy adult residents from Matzu. AFB(1)-albumin adducts were det ermined by competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, hepatitis B surfa ce antigen status by enzyme immunoassay, genotypes of glutathione S-transfe rase (GST) M1 and T1 by polymerase chain reaction, plasma selenium by atomi c absorption spectrometry, and plasma retinol, alpha -tocopherol, alpha -ca rotene, and beta -carotene levels by high-performance liquid chromatography . Men had higher AFB(1)-albumin adduct levels than women. GSTM1-nonnull and GSTT1-null genotypes and low plasma selenium level were significantly asso ciated with an increased level of AFB(1)-albumin adducts among men, whereas age was significantly correlated with adduct level among women. High intak e of fermented beans was associated with an increased adduct level among me n and women. The inverse associations between plasma selenium level and AFB (1)-albumin adducts were statistically significant among those with null ge notypes of GSTM1 and GSTT1, but not among the nonnull genotypes. This study provides insight into the dietary and genetic factors influencing AFB(1)-a lbumin adduct formation in an isolated population with high liver cancer mo rtality.