Chemopreventive action of mace (Myristica fragrans, Houtt) on DMBA-induced papillomagenesis in the skin of mice.

The present paper reports the chemopreventive property of mace (aril covering the seed of Myristica fragrans) on DMBA-induced papillomagenesis in the skin of male Swiss albino mice. When a single topical application of DMBA (150 micrograms in 100 microliters of acetone) was followed, 2 weeks later, by repeated applications of croton oil (1% in acetone, three times/week) skin papillomas appeared in 100% animals and the average tumors per tumor-bearing animal was 5.67. On the other hand, when animals receiving similar treatments were put on a diet containing 1% mace during the periinitiational phase of tumorigenesis, the skin papilloma incidence was reduced to 50% and the average tumor per tumor-bearing mouse was only 1.75. This decline in papilloma was significant (P less than 0.05).