Cancer and Beans and Nuts and Cereals

<<snip>>
comparable to that of cisplatin
<<snip>>

Compound in Beans May Fight Cancer

By Michael Smith, MedPage Today Staff Writer
Reviewed by Robert Jasmer, MD; Assistant Professor of Medicine,
University of California, San Francisco
September 15, 2005


LONDON, Sept. 15-The term inositol pentakisphosphate will never make
it into a jingle that starts, "Beans, beans," but inositol
pentakisphosphate may be an active anti-cancer agent in beans. Action
Points

Advise patients that a diet including servings of different
vegetables, fruits and legumes is known to have beneficial health
effects.


Note that this study suggests that a compound found in beans, nuts,
and cereals may have anticancer effects.


Caution that the study is preliminary and has not included any
clinical testing.
Researchers at University College London say that inositol
pentakisphosphate is a compound in beans, nuts, and cereals that
inhibits an enzyme involved in tumor growth.


"We believe that inositol pentakisphosphate is a promising anticancer
tool," said Marco Falasca, Ph.D., of the college's Sackler Institute.
Also, he said, "a diet enriched in food such as beans, nuts and
cereals ... could help prevent cancer." All this was reported in the
Sept. 15 issue of the journal Cancer Research.


The enzyme phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) -- first discovered in the
1980s -- plays a key role in the development and progression of human
tumors, Dr. Falasca and colleagues reported. The PI3K superfamily now
includes at least 12 related enzymes that are involved in the
development of a range of cancers, including small cell lung cancer,
breast cancer, and others.


But potential inhibitors of the enzymes have been too toxic or
unstable for use, Dr. Falasca and colleagues said.


In contrast, "it is important to underline that (inositol
pentakisphosphate and related compounds) are naturally occurring
substances that are present in most legumes, and in wheat bran and
nuts," the researchers noted.


"Our study reveals a new pharmacologically active nutrient ... and
underlines the importance of the use of certain foods in the
prevention of cancer," they added.


The study had two parts -- an examination of the effects of inositol
pentakisphosphate in human umbilical vein endothelial cells and a look
at how it affected tumor growth in nude mice.


In vitro, Dr. Falasca and colleagues reported, the compound promoted
apoptosis, blocked cell migration and inhibited angiogenesis.


In the mice, the compound inhibited the growth of human ovarian
carcinomas that had been transplanted. Strikingly, the researchers
noted, the effect "was comparable to that of cisplatin, the drug
commonly used for ovarian cancer treatment."


The concentration used in the mice was 50 mg/kg, which Dr. Falasca
characterized as "very low," and no toxicity was seen. But even at
relatively high concentrations in vitro, Dr. Falasca and colleagues
said, the compound showed no toxic effects.


The next step, Dr. Falasca said, is to bring the compound into the
clinic. "Our work will now focus on establishing whether the phosphate
inhibitor can be developed into an anti-cancer agent for human
therapy," he said.


Additional Other Cancers Coverage

Primary source: Cancer Research
Source reference:
Maffucci T et al. Inhibition of the Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase/Akt
Pathway by Inositol Pentakisphosphate Results in Antiangiogenic and
Antitumor Effects. Cancer Res 2005; 65(18): 8339-49

-----------------------------------

Variation of InsP4,InsP5 and InsP6 levels in tissues and biological
fluids depending on dietary phytate.
The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, Volume 12, Issue 10, Pages
595-601
F. Grases

Who loves ya.
Tom


Jesus Was A Vegetarian!
http://jesuswasavegetarian.7h.com


Man Is A Herbivore!
http://tinyurl.com/a3cc3


DEAD PEOPLE WALKING
http://tinyurl.com/zk9fk