Abstract Background The activity of P-glycoprotein (Pgp) and multidrug resistance related protein 1 (MRP1), two membrane transporters involved in multidrug resistance of colon cancer, is increased by high amounts of cholesterol in plasma membrane and detergent resistant membranes (DRMs). It has never been investigated whether omega 3 polyunsatured fatty acids (PUFAs), which modulate cholesterol homeostasis in dyslipidemic syndromes and have chemopreventive effects in colon cancer, may affect the response to chemotherapy in multidrug resistant (MDR) tumors.
Methods We studied the effect of omega 3 PUFAs docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) in human chemosensitive colon cancer HT29 cells and in their MDR counterpart, HT29-dx cells.
Results MDR cells, which overexpressed Pgp and MRP1, had a dysregulated cholesterol metabolism, due to the lower expression of ubiquitin E3 ligase Trc8: this produced lower ubiquitination rate of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase (HMGC oAR), higher cholesterol synthesis, higher cholesterol content in MDR cells. We found that DHA and EPA re-activated Trc8 E3 ligase in MDR cells, restored the ubiquitination rate of HMGCoAR to levels comparable with chemosensitive cells, reduced the cholesterol synthesis and incorporation in DRMs. Omega 3 PUFAs were incorporated in whole lipids as well as in DRMs of MDR cells, and altered the lipid composition of these compartments. They reduced the amount of Pgp and MRP1 contained in DRMs, decreased the transporters activity, restored the antitumor effects of different chemotherapeutic drugs, restored a proper tumor-immune system recognition in response to chemotherapy in MDR cells.
Conclusions Our work describes a new biochemical effect of omega 3 PUFAs, which can be useful to overcome chemoresistance in MDR colon cancer cells.
Docosahexaenoic acid: A natural powerful adjuvant that improves efficacy for anticancer treatment with no adverse effects. Siddiqui RA, Harvey KA, Xu Z, Bammerlin EM, Walker C, Altenburg JD
Cellular Biochemistry Laboratory, Indiana University Health, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA; Department of Medicine, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA. [email protected].
Abstract Epidemiological studies have linked fish oil consumption to a decreased incidence of cancer. The anticancer effects of fish oil are mostly attributed to its content of omega-3 fatty acids: eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). However, DHA, because of its unique effect of altering membrane composition, is often regarded as the major omega-3 fatty acid involved in anticancer activity. Although use of DHA as an anticancer drug to prevent or treat human cancer in clinical settings has not yet been well established, recent studies suggest that DHA can be very effective as an adjuvant with other anticancer agents. In this article, we present studies that show the role of DHA in improving anticancer drug efficacy. Several in vitro and animal studies suggest that combining DHA with other anticancer agents often improves efficacy of anticancer drugs and also reduces therapy-associated side effects. Incorporation of DHA in cellular membranes improves drug uptake, whereas increased lipid peroxidation is another mechanism for DHA-mediated enhanced efficacy of anticancer drugs. In addition, several intracellular targets including cyclooxygenase-2, nuclear factor kappa B, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma, mitogen-activated protein kinase, AKT, and BCL-2/BAX are found to play an important role in DHA-mediated additive or synergistic interaction with anticancer drugs. The data suggest that DHA is a safe, natural compound that can greatly improve the anticancer properties of anticancer drugs. Use of DHA with anticancer treatments provides an avenue to therapeutic improvement that involves less risk or side effects for patients and reduced regulatory burden for implementation.
Source : Biofactors. 2011 Oct 28. doi: 10.1002/biof.181. [Epub ahead of print] Link to Abstract as above
The Impact of Fish Oil on the Chemopreventive Efficacy of Tamoxifen against Development of N-Methyl-N-Nitrosourea–Induced Rat Mammary Carcinogenesis
Andrea Manni1, Haifang Xu1,Sharlene Washington1,Cesar Aliaga2,Timothy Cooper3,John P. Richie, Jr.4,Richard Bruggeman5,Bogdan Prokopczyk6,Ana Calcagnotto4,Neil Trushin6,David Mauger4,Michael F. Verderame1, and Karam El-Bayoumy2
Abstract The antiestrogen tamoxifen reduces breast cancer incidence in high-risk women but is unable to inhibit the development of hormone-independent tumors. Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFA), known ligands of the peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-γ (PPARγ), generally exert tumor-suppressive effects. Based on the known crosstalk between the estrogen and the PPARγ receptors, we tested the hypothesis that the combination of tamoxifen with n-3 PUFA results in a superior antitumor action over the individual interventions. In this study, we report for the first time that the combination of a fish oil diet rich in n-3 PUFA and tamoxifen seemed to inhibit N-methyl-N-nitrosourea–induced mammary carcinogenesis, tumor multiplicity, and volume to a greater extent than the individual interventions. The potential superiority of the combination was particularly evident at a suboptimal dose of tamoxifen, which, by itself, was unable to significantly decrease tumor development. Because activation of PPARγ is known to inhibit oxidative stress, we examined the effects of our interventions on circulating and tumor levels of glutathione, a major intracellular antioxidant. Our results indicate that reduction in the level of oxidative stress may be a potential mechanism by which the n-3 PUFA–rich diet potentiated the tumor-suppressive effect of tamoxifen. Our interventions were well tolerated without evidence of toxicity. Combined administration of tamoxifen and n-3 PUFA is a promising new approach to breast cancer prevention. Because of its safety, this combination can quickly be translated to the clinic if its superiority can be supported by future studies.
Source : doi: 10.1158/1940-6207.CAPR-09-0173 Cancer Prev Res March 2010 3; 322 Link to Full Article
Multi-targeted Therapy of Cancer by Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Isabelle M. Berquin1,2, Iris J. Edwards2, and Yong Q. Chen1* 1Cancer Biology, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina. 2Department of Pathology, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Omega-3 (n-3) and omega-6 (n-6) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are essential fatty acids necessary for human health. Currently, the Western diet contains a disproportionally high amount of n-6 PUFAs and low amount of n-3 PUFAs, and the resulting high n-6/n-3 ratio is thought to contribute to cardiovascular disease, inflammation, and cancer. Studies in human populations have linked high consumption of fish or fish oil to reduced risk of colon, prostate and breast cancer, although other studies failed to find a significant association. Nonetheless, the available epidemiological evidence, combined with the demonstrated effects of n-3 PUFAs on cancer in animal and cell culture models, has motivated the development of clinical interventions using n-3 PUFAs in the prevention and treatment of cancer, as well as for nutritional support of cancer patients to reduce weight loss and modulate the immune system. In this review, we discuss the rationale for using long-chain n-3 PUFAs in cancer prevention and treatment and the challenges that such approaches pose in the design of clinical trials.
Source Cancer Lett. 2008 October 8; 269(2): 363–377. doi:10.1016/j.canlet.2008.03.044 LINK TO FULL ARTICLE
Sources of Omega 3 Fatty Acid Plants synthesize the first member of the n-3 PUFA series, alpha linolenic acid (α-LNA;18:3n-3). Sources of this fatty acid include soybeans, walnuts, dark green leafy vegetables such as kale, spinach, broccoli and Brussels sprouts, and seeds or their oils such as flaxseed, mustard seed and rapeseed (canola); however, the majority of these oils are also rich in LA. Dietary long-chain n-3 PUFAs are found primarily in cold-water fish in forms of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; 20:5n-3) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 22:6n-3). Fish ingest EPA and DHA from phytoplankton and zooplankton (12). It is important to note that the content of marine n-3 fatty acids varies greatly according to the species of fish, the total fat content of the fish and the geographical location of waters they inhabit (13). Even within a species, the n-3 fatty acids vary from Atlantic to Pacific Ocean. As a general rule, deep water fish such as mackerel, tuna and salmon from colder temperatures have the highest content of EPA and DHA. Fish farming may have a marked influence on fatty acid composition according to diets supplied to the fish