Should we emphasize Cruciferae in the CRON?

[Guest guest]

Seems to that evidence is mounting that isothiocyanates and others

specific to Cruciferae are one of the better lines of defense against

the deadly 'cancers'. A larger consumption of crucifers, as well as

caloric restriction is better hedge to our bet?

Cruciferous vegetables, the GSTP1 Ile105Val genetic polymorphism, and

breast cancer risk1,2,3

Sang-Ah Lee, Jay H Fowke, Wei Lu, Chuangzhong Ye, Ying Zheng, Qiuyin

Cai, Kai Gu, Yu-Tang Gao, Xiao-ou Shu and Wei Zheng

1 From the Vanderbilt Epidemiology Center, Vanderbilt University

Medical Center, Nashville, TN (S-AL, JHF, CY, QC, XS, and WZ); the

Shanghai Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Shanghai, China

(WL, YZ, and KG); and the Department of Epidemiology, Shanghai Cancer

Institute, Shanghai, China (Y-TG)

Background: Cruciferous vegetables are the primary source of

isothiocyanates and other glucosinolate derivatives that are known to

induce phase II detoxifying enzymes, including glutathione

S-transferases (GSTs).

Objective: We investigated the independent and combined effects of

cruciferous vegetable intake and the GSTP1 Ile105Val genetic

polymorphism on breast cancer risk.

Design: Analyses included 3035 cases and 3037 population controls who

were participating in the Shanghai Breast Cancer Study and for whom

diet and genetic data were complete (87% of cases and 85% of controls).

Results: With the use of multivariate logistic regression, the GSTP1

Val/Val genotype was significantly associated with greater breast

cancer risk (OR = 1.50; 95% CI: 1.12, 1.99). The association was

significantly greater in premenopausal women (OR = 1.69; 95% CI: 1.17,

2.43) than in postmenopausal women (OR = 1.20; 95% CI: 0.74, 1.92).

Total cruciferous vegetable intake was not significantly associated

with breast cancer risk, although subjects reporting greater turnip (P

for trend < 0.001) and Chinese cabbage (P for trend = 0.049) intakes

had a significantly lower postmenopausal breast cancer risk. Women

with the GSTP1 Val/Val genotype and low cruciferous vegetable intake

had a breast cancer risk 1.74-fold (95% CI: 1.13, 2.67) that of women

with the Ile/Ile or Ile/Val genotype. This effect of low cruciferous

vegetable intake and the Val/Val genotype was seen predominantly among

premenopausal women (OR = 2.08; 95% CI = 1.20, 3.59).

Conclusions: Cruciferous vegetable intake consistent with high

isothiocyanate exposure may reduce breast cancer risk. Cruciferous

vegetable intake also may ameliorate the effects of the GSTP1 genotype.