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Green tea components linked to slowing cancer growth
Source: (cancerfacts.com)
Thursday, December 02, 2004
PHILADELPHIA – Dec. 2, 2004 – Researchers are zeroing in on the components and mechanisms of green tea that may have prostate cancer prevention characteristics.
A team of researchers led by Dr. Hasan Mukhtar of the Department of Dermatology at the University of Wisconsin, found that green tea chemicals, called polyphenols, target molecular pathways that shut down the proliferation and spread of tumor cells, as well as slow the growth of tumor nurturing blood vessels, according to research published in the Dec. 1 issue of Cancer Research.
"Consumption of green tea polyphenols (GTP) led to reduced levels of IGF-1 (insulin growth factor)," said Mukhtar in a news release. "GTP also led to increased levels of one of the binding proteins for IGF-1, the insulin growth factor binding protein-3. These observations bear significance in light of studies that indicate increased levels of IGF-1 are associated with increased risk of several cancers, such as prostate, breast, lung and colon."
The researchers from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wis., and Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, working in a mouse model for human prostate cancer, documented the role of green tea polyphenols (GTP) in altering the molecular action inside the cell. The GTP acted on "cell circuit" that is activated by insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) in prostate tumor cells.
The GTPs reduced production of key cell survival proteins and reduced production of proteins known to be associated with the spread of cancer cells from the prostate to other parts of the body.
The green tea polyphenols also contributed to minimizing tumor development by governing the amount of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the serum of the prostate cancer mouse model.
The reduction of VEGF may result from GTP-induced suppression of IGF-1 levels. VEGF functions to recruit and develop new blood vessels that carry nutrients to developing tumors. By reducing the amount of VEGF, GTP works to minimize nutrients flowing to and supporting tumor growth.
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