Indomethacin induces small intestinal damage and inhibits amitrole-associated thyroid carcinogenesis in rats initiated with N-bis(2-hydroxypropyl)nitrosamine.

Effects of intestinal damage on thyroid carcinogenesis due to amitrole (AT) were examined in F344 male rats initiated with N-bis(2-hydroxypropyl)nitrosamine (DHPN). In experiment 1, rats were provided with diet containing 0.03% AT for 20 weeks after a single subcutaneous injection of DHPN (2800 mg/kg body weight), and concomitantly received 0.01% indomethacin (IM) in the diet to cause small intestinal damage or 1% dextran sodium sulfate (DSS) in the drinking water for induction of colitis following a schedule of intermittent 1-week administration and 1-week withdrawal for a total of 10 times. Groups without AT- and/or IM or DSS treatment were also included. Histopathological examination revealed significant reduction in the incidence and multiplicity of follicular cell adenomas and adenocarcinomas in the group concomitantly treated with IM, but no change in the DSS group, as compared with the AT alone group. In experiment 2, rats were similarly fed diet containing AT for 3 weeks with concomitant IM or DSS treatment after a DHPN initiation, and serum thyroid stimulating hormone levels were found to be significantly elevated only in the IM case. The increase in thyroid follicular cell proliferation due to AT was also clearly suppressed in the group concomitantly treated with IM. From these findings, IM-induced intestinal damage may inhibit thyroid carcinogeneisis in rats, although contributions of other factors, such as a direct inhibitory effect of IM to thyroid follicular cell proliferation cannot be ruled out.