>Magister Scientiae - MSc / New therapeutic strategies are needed for a diverse array of poorly understood neurological impairments. These include neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease, and the psychiatric disorders such as depression, anxiety and drug dependence. Popular neuropharmacotherapies have focused on dopamine (DA), serotonin (5HT), γ-aminobutric acid (GABA) and glutamate systems (Jupp & Lawrence, 2010). However recent research points to the sigma receptor (σR) as a possible neuromodulatory system. Due to its multi-receptor action, the σR can trigger several significant biological pathways. This indicates its ideal potential as a drug target to effectively minimise drug dosage and potential side effects. Currently there are a limited number of σR ligands available and few possess the selectivity to significantly show σR’s role in neurological processes. Polycyclic amines have shown notable sigma activity and provide an advantageous scaffold for drug design that can improve pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic properties (Banister et al., 2010; Geldenhuys et al., 2005). Aryl-heterocycle amine groups were also shown to improve σR activity (Piergentili et al., 2009).

Bakgrund: Över 20 mutagena ämnen har detekterats i tillagade livsmedel. Till dessa räknas heterocykliska aminer. Studier har visat att dessa aminer kan orsaka mutationer och därmed öka risken för att utveckla cancer. Heterocykliska aminer bildas under tillagning av kött i höga temperaturer genom Maillardreaktionen. Syfte: Syftet med denna litteraturstudie var att se om marinering med öl, vin eller örtkryddor kan minska bildningen av heterocykliska aminer vid tillagning av kött. Metod: Denna studie är en litteraturstudie med ett urval av artiklar från databaserna PubMed och Web of Science. Totalt inkluderades 6 artiklar varav 3 artiklar studerade marinering med öl/vin och 3 studerade marinering med örtkryddor och örtextrakt. Resultat: Samtliga studier som undersöktes visade att marinering har en reducerande effekt på mängden heterocykliska aminer som bildas vid tillagning. Den mest troliga hypotesen om mekanismen är att effekten beror på den antioxidativa förmågan hos marinaderna. Ett exempel är en marinad med kombinationen gurkmeja och citrongräs som reducerade koncentrationen heterocykliska aminer med 94,8%. Slutsats: Marinering med öl, vin eller örtkryddor visades effektivt reducera mängden heterocykliska aminer. Stora reducerande effekter detekterades i marinader med gurkmeja, citrongräs, ingefära och mörk lager. Mer forskning behövs för att fastställa om reduktionen är kopplad till den antioxidativa effekten hos marinaderna / Background: Over 20 different mutagenic substances has been detected in cooked food. These include heterocyclic amines. Studies have shown that these amines can create mutations and increase the risk of developing cancer. Heterocyclic amines are formed in meat during the Maillard reaction which occours at high temperature cooking. Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate if the effect of marinating with beer, wine and herbs/spices can reduce the formation of heterocyclic amines found in cooked meat. Method: This study is a literature study with a selection of articles from databases PubMed and Web of Science. Six articles were included in this study. 3 articles involved marinade with beer/wine and 3 articles involved marinade with herbs/spices and extract. Results: All studies examined showed that marinating has a reducing effect on the concentration of heterocyclic amines formed during cooking. The most credible hypothesis of the mechanism is that the effect depends on the antioxidativ capacity of the marinades. For example one marinade with the combination of turmeric and lemon grass reduced the concentration of heterocyclic amines by 94,8%. Conclusion: Marinades containing beer, wine or herbs/spices was shown to effectively reduce the amount of heterocyclic amines. Great reducing effects were found using turmeric, lemon grass, ginger and black beer. More scientific research is needed to determine if the reduction is linked to the antioxidant effect in marinades.

The role of meat consumption in the development of cancer, including colorectal cancer (CRC), has been subject of much investigation in recent years. The observation of geographical variation in CRC incidence and increased CRC risks in populations consuming high levels of meat prompted researchers to hypothesise a link between meat and CRC. An area of particular interest in CRC pathogenesis is the meat-derived compounds such are heterocyclic amines (HCAs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and meatderived mutagenic activity. Australia is among the countries with high incidence of CRC and also high levels of per capita meat consumption. Hence, clarifying the possible link between meat consumption and the risk of CRC in order that this can be translated into preventive dietary recommendations for the public is important. The objective of this thesis was to examine whether meat consumption is related to risk of CRC in an Australian population. The term meat consumption in this thesis means meaures of consumption of red and white meat that incorporate frequency and cooking method. The following hypotheses were investigated: 1. Increasing intake of meat prepared by methods that involve higher cooking temperature and time is positively associated with the risk of CRC; 2. Increasing exposure to meat-derived heterocyclic amines (HCAs) is positively associated with the risk of CRC; 3. Higher levels of exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from meat consumption is a risk factor for CRC; 4. Exposure to meat-derived mutagens increases the risk of CRC.