Dietary Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids and Cancer

261 Pages·2010·6.92 MB·English

by  Gabriella Calviello

Diet and Cancer
SeriesEditor
AdrianaAlbini
Forfurthervolumes:
http://www.springer.com/series/8049
·
Gabriella Calviello Simona Serini
Editors
Dietary Omega-3
Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids
and Cancer
123
Editors
Prof.GabriellaCalviello Dr.SimonaSerini
Universita`CattolicaSacro Universita`CattolicaSacro
Cuore-Roma Cuore-Roma
IstitutodiPatologiaGenerale
IstitutodiPatologiaGenerale
LargoF.Vito,1
LargoF.Vito,1
00168Roma
00168Roma Italy
Italy [email protected]
[email protected]
ISBN978-90-481-3578-3 e-ISBN978-90-481-3579-0
DOI10.1007/978-90-481-3579-0
SpringerDordrechtHeidelbergLondonNewYork
LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2009942718
©SpringerScience+BusinessMediaB.V.2010
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Contents
PartI PossibleMechanisms
1 PossibleMechanismsofω-3PUFAAnti-tumourAction. . . . . . . 3
MichaelB.SawyerandCatherineJ.Field
PartII ω-3PUFAsandColonCancer
2 ω-3PUFAsandColonCancer:EpidemiologicalStudies . . . . . . 41
YasumiKimura
3 ω-3PUFAsandColonCancer:ExperimentalStudiesand
HumanInterventionalTrials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
SimonaSerini,ElisabettaPiccioni,andGabriellaCalviello
PartIII ω-3PUFAsandHormone-RelatedCancers(BreastandProstate)
4 ω-3PUFAsandBreastCancer:EpidemiologicalStudies . . . . . . 93
PaulD.TerryandPamelaJ.Mink
5 ω-3PUFAsandProstateCancer:EpidemiologicalStudies . . . . . 109
PierreAstorg
6 ω-3PUFAs:InterventionalTrialsforthePreventionand
TreatmentofBreastandProstateCancer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
IsabelleM.Berquin,IrisJ.Edwards,JosephT.O’Flaherty,and
YongQ.Chen
7 ω-3PUFAs,BreastandProstateCancer:ExperimentalStudies . . 167
IrisJ.Edwards,IsabelleM.Berquin,YongQ.Chen,and
JosephT.O’Flaherty
PartIV ω-3PUFAsandOtherCancers
8 ω-3PUFAsandOtherCancers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
KyuLimandTongWu
v
vi Contents
9 The Influence of ω-3 PUFAs on Chemo- or Radiation
TherapyforCancer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
W.ElaineHardman
10 ω-3PUFAsandCachexia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
MichaelJ.Tisdale
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247
Contributors
PierreAstorg UnitéNutritionetRégulationLipidiquedesFonctionsCérébrales
(NuReLiCe),INRA,78352Jouy-en-Josas,France,[email protected]
IsabelleM.Berquin DepartmentsofCancerBiologyandComprehensiveCancer
Center,WakeForestUniversitySchoolofMedicine,Winston-Salem,NC
27157,USA,[email protected]
GabriellaCalviello InstituteofGeneralPathology,CatholicUniversity,L.goF.
Vito1,00168Rome,Italy,[email protected]
YongQ.Chen DepartmentsofCancerBiologyandComprehensiveCancer
Center,WakeForestUniversitySchoolofMedicine,Winston-Salem,NC27157,
USA,[email protected]
IrisJ.Edwards DepartmentofPathologyandComprehensiveCancerCenter,
WakeForestUniversitySchoolofMedicine,MedicalCenterBoulevard,
Winston-Salem,NC27157,USA,[email protected]
CatherineJ.Field AlbertaInstituteforHumanNutrition,4-126AHRIFEast,
UniversityofAlberta,Edmonton,AB,Canada,catherine.fi[email protected]
W.ElaineHardman DepartmentofBiochemistryandMicrobiology,Byrd
BiotechnologyScienceCenter,MarshallUniversitySchoolofMedicine,
Huntington,WV25755,USA,[email protected]
YasumiKimura DepartmentofNutritionandLifeScience,FukuyamaUniversity,
Fukuyama,Hiroshima,729-0292,Japan,[email protected]
KyuLim DepartmentofBiochemisty,CancerResearchInstituteandInfection
SignalingNetworkResearchCenter,CollegeofMedicine,ChungnamNational
University,Daejeon,Korea,[email protected]
PamelaJ.Mink DepartmentofEpidemiology,RollinsSchoolofPublicHealth,
EmoryUniversity,Atlanta,GA,USA,[email protected]
JosephT.O’Flaherty DepartmentsofInternalMedicineandComprehensive
CancerCenter,WakeForestUniversitySchoolofMedicine,Winston-Salem,NC
27157,USA,jofl[email protected]
vii
viii Contributors
ElisabettaPiccioni InstituteofGeneralPathology,CatholicUniversity,L.goF.
Vito1,00168Rome,Italy,[email protected]
MichaelB.Sawyer DepartmentsofOncology,UniversityofAlberta,Edmonton,
AB,Canada,[email protected]
SimonaSerini InstituteofGeneralPathology,CatholicUniversity,L.goF.Vito1,
00168Rome,Italy,[email protected]
PaulD.Terry DepartmentofEpidemiology,RollinsSchoolofPublicHealth,
EmoryUniversity,Atlanta,GA,USA,[email protected]
MichaelJ.Tisdale NutritionalBiomedicine,SchoolofLifeandHealthSciences,
AstonUniversity,Birmingham,B47ET,UK,[email protected]
TongWu DepartmentofPathology,UniversityofPittsburghSchoolofMedicine,
Pittsburgh,PA,USA,[email protected]
Introduction: Omega-3 PUFAs,
Why Do We Speak About Them?
GabriellaCalvielloandSimonaSerini
Abstract In spite of the fact that few dietary components are so widely recog-
nized as able to improve human health such as ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids
(PUFAs),sothattheirsectorinthenutritionalmarkethasbeenincreasinglygrow-
ing worldwide, many unresolved questions still remain about them. In particular,
there is urgent need for better understanding their possible role as anti-neoplastic
agents. First of all, the chemical structure, the intracellular metabolism, and the
dietary sources and bioavailability of these dietary fatty acids will be described in
this introductive chapter to make easier the comprehension of the remaining parts
of the book. Afterward, a brief outline of ω-3 PUFA reported benefits in differ-
entfieldsofhumanhealthwillbeprovided.Inthisintroductivepartwewilltackle
alsotheproblemofthediscrepanciesoccurringbetweentheresultsofmostexperi-
mentalstudiesonanimalsandculturedcells,which,almostunivocally,suggestthe
beneficialanti-neoplasticeffectsofthesefattyacids,andtheoutcomeofseveralof
theepidemiologicalobservationalstudies,which,conversely,showsascarceornull
positive association between high intake of fish or fish oil at high content in ω-3
PUFAs and prevention of different kinds of cancer. Finally, a brief outline of the
organizationofthepresentbookwillbeprovided.
Keywords ω-3 PUFA · Metabolism · Dietary sources · Bioavailability ·
Anti-neoplasticeffects
Introduction
Therearefewdietarycomponentsthataresowidelyrecognizedasabletoimprove
human health like ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), and whose sector in
thenutritionalmarkethasbeenincreasinglygrowingworldwide.However,despite
B
G.Calviello( )
Institute of General Pathology, School of Medicine, Catholic University, L.go F. Vito 1 00168
Rome,Italy
e-mail:[email protected]
ix
x Introduction:Omega-3PUFAs,WhyDoWeSpeakAboutThem?
their large fame and easy commercial availability, many unresolved questions still
remain about them. For instance, may their intake represent an actual preventive
strategyagainstcancer?Istheiringestionsafeforhealthypeople?Dotheyhavethe
potential to act as chemotherapic agents in combination or not with other conven-
tional anti-cancer therapies? Which kind of cancer patients could actually benefit
fromtreatmentswithω-3PUFAs?Atwhatstagesofcancergrowthandprogression
theirintakecouldbeconsideredreallyfruitful?Thepresentbookhasbeenthought
in order to collect the findings and opinions of several influential scientists in the
fields and thus to help answering these and other questions. The beneficial effect
of ω-3 PUFAs on hormone-related cancers (breast and prostate cancer) and colon
cancer has received most of the attention, and for this reason they will be treated
in separate chapters. ω-3 PUFAs, however, appear to exert their positive influence
also toward a number of other kinds of cancers, including leukemias/lymphomas,
melanoma, neuroblastoma, liver, and lung cancer. However, before treating these
specifictopics,ageneralintroductionwillbefurnishedinthischapterwiththeaim
to clarify some basic aspects regarding ω-3 PUFAs, such as their chemical struc-
tureandmetabolism,theirsourcesandbioavailability,andtheotherdiseaseswhose
incidenceorprogressioncanbefavorablyaffectedbythesefattyacids.
ChemistryandMetabolismofω-3PUFAs
Fatty acids (FA) are constituted by carbon chains of various lengths in which car-
bons are bound by single or double bonds. A methyl group is present at one end
(the “n” or “ω” end) and a carboxyl group at the other end. The lack or pres-
ence of double bonds between the carbons defines the two classes of saturated
andunsaturatedfattyacids(UFA).Dependingonthepresenceofoneormoredou-
ble bonds in the carbon chain, UFAs are divided into monounsaturated fatty acids
(MUFAs) and PUFAs. The prevalent PUFAs found in nature belong to the ω-3
and ω-6 classes of PUFAs, whose first double bond is, respectively, placed either
three carbons (in the ω-3 or n–3 position) or six carbons (in the ω-6 or n–6 posi-
tion)fromthemethylendofthecarbonchain.Thethreemaindietaryω-3PUFAs
areα-linolenicacid(C18:3n–3,all-cis-9,12,15-octadecatrienoicacid,ALA),eicos-
apentaenoic acid (C20:5 n–3, all-cis-eicosa-5,8,11,14,17-pentaenoic acid, EPA),
and docosahexaenoic acid (C22:6 n–3, all-cis-docosa-4,7,10,13,16,19-hexaenoic
acid,DHA)(Fig.1).ALA,togetherwithlinoleicacid(LA,18:2n:6),isconsidered
the “essential fatty acid” (EFA), namely the diet must necessarily provide them,
since the desaturase needed to place the double bond in position ω-3 or ω-6 in
the PUFAs is lacking in mammals. On the other hand, this desaturase is present
invegetables, which,therefore,representthemaindietarysourceofALAandLA
formammals.ManycommonlyusedvegetablesoilsareenrichedinLA(corn,saf-
flower,andsoybeanoils),whereascanolaoil,groundflaxseed,andwalnutscontain
high levels of ALA. PUFAs belonging to one of the two different classes (ω-3 or
ω-6)arenotinterconvertibleintoPUFAsoftheotherclass.Inourtissues,ALAand
LA can be metabolized by the sequential action of several desaturases and elon-
gases to produce EPA and arachidonic acid (AA, 20:4 n–6), respectively. Further