2-Amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP) level in human hair as biomarkers for dietary grilled/stir-fried meat and fish intake

Several case-control studies have reported possible associations between heterocyclic amine (HCA) intake and the risk of cancer. However, the validity of a questionnaire to assess HCA intake has hardly been examined. In particular, no biomarker which could serve as an independent measure of habitual HCA intake has been established. Therefore, the validity of a questionnaire to assess HCA intake by means of a biomarker remains to be investigated. In this study, we examined the availability of hair HCAs as a biochemical indicator of dietary intake of HCAs. Study subjects were 20 volunteers (7 men and 13 women) aged 25–57 years, either residents of Tokyo or the neighboring cities in Japan. We collected individual weighed dietary records (DR) over 28 consecutive days. Approximately 3–5 g of hair was collected twice from all subjects before and after DR at intervals of 1–3 months. The mean (S.D.) 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP) level of hair was 1376.0 pg/g hair (928.9) and 16.6 ng/g melanin (12.3). A steady increase in the mean PhIP level in hair from the lowest to the highest tertile of the grilled/stir-fried meat intake was observed (P = 0.009), but not in the grilled/stir-fried fish intake (P = 0.461). The PhIP level in hair was highly correlated with the grilled/stir-fried meat intake (r = 0.68) but not with the grilled/stir-fried fish intake (r = 0.28). These observations were made of hair with and without melanin adjustment. The present study indicates that the PhIP level in hair can be used as a biological indicator of dietary intake of HCAs.