Publication: Role of fatty acids in malignancy and visual impairment, Epidemiological evidence and experimental studies
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Date
2009
Authors
Tsubura, A. ; Yuri, T. ; Yoshizawa, K. ; Uehara, N. ; Takada, H.
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Publisher
Murcia : F. Hernández
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DOI
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info:eu-repo/semantics/article
Description
Abstract
International variation in breast and colon
cancer incidence is positively related to total fat intake.
However, total fat consists of different fatty acid
families, e.g., saturated fatty acids (SFAs),
monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), and n-3 and n-6
polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). Epidemiological
evidence and experimental studies suggest that these
fatty acid families have different effects on breast and
colon carcinogenesis. Therefore the action of each fatty
acid on carcinogenesis should be evaluated separately.
Although it is difficult to establish firm conclusions on
the effect of each fatty acid in human epidemiological
studies, experimental studies on animals and cultured
cells suggest that n-6 PUFAs (linoleic acid and
arachidonic acid) may have a tumor promoting effect,
while n-3 PUFAs (eicosapentaenoic acid,
docosahexaenoic acid and a-linolenic acid) and
conjugated fatty acids (CFAs; a mixture of positional
and geometric isomers of PUFAs with conjugated double
bonds) exert an inhibitory effect on tumor growth. SFAs
such as palmitic acid and stearic acid show little or no
tumor promoting effect, and the action of oleic acid, a MUFA, is inconclusive. In addition to regulation of
abnormal cell growth seen in cancers, fatty acids also
control cell loss seen in degenerative eye diseases, such
as degeneration of lens material in cataract and
degeneration of photoreceptor cells in retinitis
pigmentosa. Experiments suggest that n-6 PUFAs cause
deleterious effects, while n-3 PUFAs result in beneficial
effects on the lens and retina. In particular,
docosahexaenoic acid is known to be effective in
rescuing photoreceptor cells from damage. Thus,
understanding the function of each fatty acid is likely to be important for making progress in treating these and
other diseases.
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