Anti-cancer Compound In Vegetables Found To Block Late-stage Breast-cancer Cell Growth

From: Roman Bystrianyk (rbystrianyk_at_gmail.com)
Date: 09/17/04

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    Date: 16 Sep 2004 17:51:23 -0700

    http://www.healthsentinel.com/news.php?id=246&title=Anti-cancer+Compound+In+Vegetables+Found+To+Block+Late-stage+Breast-cancer+Cell+Growth&event=news_print_list_item

    "Anti-cancer Compound In Vegetables Found To Block Late-stage
    Breast-cancer Cell Growth", Science Daily, September 1, 2004,
    Link: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/09/040901091511.htm

    A well-known anti-cancer agent in certain vegetables has just had its
    reputation enhanced. The compound, in broccoli and other cruciferous
    vegetables, has been found to be effective in disrupting late stages
    of cell growth in breast cancer. Keith Singletary and doctoral student
    Steven Jackson of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
    report their finding involving sulforaphane (SUL), which they say
    could ultimately be used to enhance the prevention and treatment of
    breast cancer, in the September issue of the Journal of Nutrition.

    "This is the first report to show how the naturally occurring plant
    chemical sulforaphane can block late stages of the cancer process by
    disrupting components of the cell called microtubules," said
    Singletary, a professor in the department of food science and human
    nutrition. "We were surprised and pleased to find that SUL could block
    the growth of breast cells that were already cancerous."

    SUL is abundant in such vegetables as broccoli, brussels sprouts and
    kale. Chewing causes the cell walls of these vegetables to break, and
    SUL is released into the body.

    Singletary, a researcher in phytochemicals and cancer chemoprevention,
    and Jackson exposed cultures of malignant human breast cancer cells to
    SUL. Within hours, SUL blocked cell division and disrupted
    microtubules, which are long, slender cylinders made up of tubulin
    (protein), that are essential for the separation of duplicated
    chromosomes during cell division.

    "It is not yet clear whether the doses required to produce inhibition
    of tubulin polymerization are higher than those achievable via dietary
    intakes," wrote Jackson and Singletary. "However, the results show
    that tubulin disruption may be an important explanation for SUL's
    antiproliferative action."

    "These findings are significant since SUL's actions appear similar to
    a group of anticancer drugs currently in use, such as Taxol,"
    Singletary said.

    SUL is studied extensively for its effects against cancer. Previous
    reports have shown that SUL induces defensive mechanisms that are
    effective in protecting normal cells from the initiation of cancer.
    "More than 10 years ago, researchers at Johns Hopkins University
    reported that SUL is a potent inducer of enzyme systems that can
    defend against carcinogens," Singletary said. Such defense mechanisms
    are effective during the early stage of cancer.

    The Illinois research extends the 1992 discovery at Johns Hopkins and
    pinpoints how SUL works during later stages of cancer, such that SUL
    can suppress the orderly division process in human breast cancer
    cells.

    "The findings may be helpful in the development of new breast cancer
    prevention and treatment strategies," Singletary said. "For example,
    it may be possible that ingesting SUL in combination with certain
    natural compounds or drugs could enhance their anticancer
    effectiveness and reduce side effects."

    According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer this year will
    account for 15 percent of all cancer deaths in women, and
    approximately 275,000 new breast cancer cases of various forms will be
    diagnosed.

    Improvements in treatments such as chemotherapy have led to an 88
    percent survival rate in Caucasian women and a 74 percent survival
    rate in African-American women, according to the most recent ACS
    survey in 2003.

    However, some current chemotherapy drugs have side effects that have
    the ACS and other organizations seeking new strategies that combine
    chemotherapy drugs with other treatments to potentially lessen the
    toxic effects.

    The new Illinois study confirms a previous study in mice. In the
    February 2004 issue of the journal Carcinogenesis, Singletary and
    Jackson reported that SUL treatments in mice with implanted cancer
    cells resulted in decreased tumor size.

    More research is needed to assess SUL's potential in countering breast
    cancer development, Singletary said. "What we do not know is how
    specific SUL and other similar phytochemicals are toward cancer cells
    compared to normal cells," he said. "We also do not know against which
    cancers SUL's microtubule-targeting actions are most effective."

    Future studies in Singletary's lab will address those issues.

    The University of Illinois Agricultural Experiment Station and the
    U.S. Department of Agriculture funded the research.

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