Abstract
Unsaturated fatty acids, including n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) such as docosahexaenoic acid (C22:6, DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (C20:5, EPA), and a series of n-6 PUFAs were investigated for their anti-tumour and antimetastatic effects in a subcutaneous (s.c.) implanted highly metastatic colon carcinoma 26 (Co 26Lu) model. EPA and DHA exerted significant inhibitory effects on tumour growth at the implantation site and significantly decreased the numbers of lung metastatic nodules. Oleic acid also significantly inhibited lung metastatic nodules. Treatment with arachidonic acid showed a tendency for reduction in colonization. However, treatment with high doses of fatty acids, especially linoleic acid, increased the numbers of lung metastatic nodules. DHA and EPA only inhibited lung colonizations when administered together with the tumour cells, suggesting that their incorporation is necessary for an influence to be exerted. Chromatography confirmed that contents of fatty acids in both tumour tissues and plasma were indeed affected by the treatments. Tumour cells pretreated with fatty acids in vivo, in particular DHA, also showed a low potential for lung colony formation when transferred to new hosts. Thus, DHA treatment exerted marked antimetastatic activity associated with pronounced change in the fatty acid component of tumour cells. The results indicate that uptake of DHA into tumour cells results in altered tumour cell membrane characteristics and a decreased ability to metastasize.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 24 print issues and online access
$259.00 per year
only $10.79 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Iigo, M., Nakagawa, T., Ishikawa, C. et al. Inhibitory effects of docosahexaenoic acid on colon carcinoma 26 metastasis to the lung. Br J Cancer 75, 650–655 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1038/bjc.1997.116
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/bjc.1997.116
This article is cited by
-
The omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid docosahexaenoic acid inhibits proliferation and progression of non-small cell lung cancer cells through the reactive oxygen species-mediated inactivation of the PI3K /Akt pathway
Lipids in Health and Disease (2017)
-
Dietary supplementation of α-linolenic acid induced conversion of n-3 LCPUFAs and reduced prostate cancer growth in a mouse model
Lipids in Health and Disease (2017)
-
Inhibition of neuroblastoma cell proliferation with omega-3 fatty acids and treatment of a murine model of human neuroblastoma using a diet enriched with omega-3 fatty acids in combination with sunitinib
Pediatric Research (2012)
-
Dietary omega-3-polyunsaturated fatty acids prevent the development of metastases of colon carcinoma in rat liver
European Journal of Nutrition (2007)
-
Dietary fat’gene interactions in cancer
Cancer and Metastasis Reviews (2007)