Mechanisms mediating the effects of prepubertal (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acid diet on breast cancer risk in rats

Leena Hilakivi-Clarke, Susan E. Olivo, Ayesha Shajahan, Galam Khan, Yuelin Zhu, Alan Zwart, Elizabeth Cho, Robert Clarke

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

43 Scopus citations

Abstract

Dietary exposures during childhood may influence later breast cancer risk. We tested in an animal model the hypothesis that prepubertal intake of (n-3) PUFAs, present mainly in fish, reduces susceptibility to breast cancer. Between postnatal days 5 to 25, rat pups were fed (n-3) PUFA-containing diets at a 2:1 ratio of (n-6):(n-3) PUFAs (typical of prehistoric societies) or a control (n-6) PUFA diet at a 17:1 ratio of (n-6):(n-3) PUFAs (comparable with current Western societies). These fatty acids were given in a low- or high-fat context (16 or 39% energy from fat). The low-(n-3) PUFA diet reduced while the high-(n-3) PUFA diet increased carcinogen-induced mammary tumorigenesis. The low-(n-3) PUFA diet reduced mammary cell proliferation and increased apoptosis, particularly in the terminal end buds (the mammary source of malignant breast tumors). The high-(n-3) PUFA diet had opposite effects on these 2 key biomarkers and increased phospho-Akt levels, a survival factor. Microarray analyses identified genes that were permanently upregulated in the low-(n-3) PUFA-exposed glands and function in oxidative damage repair. Serum levels of 8-hydroxy- 2′deoxyguanosine, a marker of DNA damage, were significantly reduced in these low-(n-3) PUFA-fed rats, and increased in the high-(n-3) PUFA-exposed group. The latter group exhibited reduced expression of BRCA1, a DNA repair gene. Our results indicate that the opposing susceptibilities to mammary tumorigenesis between the low- versus high-fat (n-3) PUFA-exposed groups were associated with altered DNA damage repair and gene expression linked to proliferation, survival, and differentiation.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)2946S-2952S
JournalJournal of Nutrition
Volume135
Issue number12
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 2005
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids
  • Mammary tumorigenesis
  • Prepubertal diet

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