Relationship of aging and tobacco use with the development of aberrant crypt foci in a predominantly African-American population  Darran Moxon, Mamoon Raza, Richard Kenney, Ronald Ewing, Ahsan Arozullah, Joel B. Mason, Robert E. Carroll  Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology  Volume 3, Issue 3, Pages 271-278 (March 2005) DOI: 10.1016/S1542-3565(04)00623-8 Copyright © 2005 American Gastroenterological Association Terms and Conditions

Figure 1 (A) Human rectum with ACF composed of indented crypts. The elevated surface in contrast to the surrounding normal mucosa was more apparent in the larger ACF lesions (magnification, 35×). (B) An ACF, with enlarged, rounded, and oval-shaped crypts, is at the center of the field. The relative size difference from the normal background crypts and increased pericryptal staining are identifying features (magnification, 35×). (C) Larger ACF have more intense staining and increased elevation, but the architecture of individual crypts was not altered. Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology 2005 3, 271-278DOI: (10.1016/S1542-3565(04)00623-8) Copyright © 2005 American Gastroenterological Association Terms and Conditions

Figure 2 Scatter plot of age in years and ACF number for nonsmokers enrolled in the study. Individuals with folate-depleted tissue levels (■) and folate-replete tissue levels (□) are shown both as a simple graph and as a log-log plot (inset). The median age of the sample (70 y) and mean ACF number (9.2) are shown by dashed and solid lines, respectively. Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology 2005 3, 271-278DOI: (10.1016/S1542-3565(04)00623-8) Copyright © 2005 American Gastroenterological Association Terms and Conditions

Figure 3 Distribution of endoscopic pathology at initial examination and ACF number in smokers (•) and nonsmokers (○). Mean ACF number (mean ± SEM) is displayed for normal, small adenomas, and advanced neoplasia. Nonpaired t test *P = .002, **P = .07. Power = .982. Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology 2005 3, 271-278DOI: (10.1016/S1542-3565(04)00623-8) Copyright © 2005 American Gastroenterological Association Terms and Conditions