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Anti-cancer effects of butyrate: use of micro-array technology to investigate mechanisms

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 March 2007

Elizabeth A. Williams ,
Jonathan M. Coxhead  and
John C. Mathers
Elizabeth A. Williams*
Affiliation:
Human Nutrition Research Centre, School of Clinical Medical Sciences, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, UK
Jonathan M. Coxhead
Affiliation:
Human Nutrition Research Centre, School of Clinical Medical Sciences, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, UK
John C. Mathers
Affiliation:
Human Nutrition Research Centre, School of Clinical Medical Sciences, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, UK
*
*Corresponding author: DrLizWilliams, fax +44 191 222 8684, e.a.williams@ncl.ac.uk
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Abstract

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Epidemiological evidence suggests that a high intake of resistant starch and NSP protects against colo-rectal cancer. The mechanisms underlying this protection are thought to be mediated by the short-chain fatty acid butyrate, which is present in the colonic lumen in millimolar concentrations as a result of bacterial fermentation of carbohydrates that have resisted digestion in the small intestine. In vitro studies have shown that butyrate displays a host of chemo-preventative properties including increased apoptosis, reduced proliferation, down regulation of angiogenesis, enhanced immunosurveillance and anti-inflammatory effects in colo-rectal cancer cell lines. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the apparent chemo-preventative actions of butyrate are largely unknown. The evidence supporting the role of butyrate as an anti-cancer agent is reviewed, with particular emphasis on those studies that have attempted to elucidate the mechanism of action of butyrate. Our understanding of the mechanistic action of butyrate and its role in cancer prevention is likely to advance considerably in this post-genomic era with the application of genomic and proteomic technologies. Studies are described that have used gene array and proteomic techniques to investigate the response of colo-rectal cancer cells to butyrate. These pioneering studies illustrate the potential of these technologies to help characterise the molecular responses of the cancer cell to butyrate, and to define the role of butyrate (and other nutrients) in the prevention of colo-rectal cancer.

Keywords

ButyrateMicro-array techniquesColo-rectal cancer

Information

Type
Session: Short-chain fatty acids
Information
Proceedings of the Nutrition Society , Volume 62 , Issue 1 , February 2003 , pp. 107 - 115
Copyright
Copyright © The Nutrition Society 2003

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