An ancillary study of participants in a randomized, placebo-controlled trial suggests that ingestion of bovine lactoferrin promotes expression of interferon alpha in the human colon

AbstractStudies using animal models have demonstrated that ingestion of bovine lactoferrin (bLF) is able to induce cytokine expression in the intestine and inhibit carcinogenesis in the colon and other organs of experimental animals. Consequently, a clinical trial was conducted in the National Cancer Center Hospital, Tokyo, Japan to determine whether ingestion of bLF affected the growth of colorectal polyps in humans. The Tokyo-trial found that ingestion of 3.0 g bLF suppressed the growth of colorectal polyps and increased the level of serum human lactoferrin in participants 63 years old or younger. The present study is a complementary study to the Tokyo-trial to determine if a change in the expression of one or more cytokines could be detected in the colon of the Tokyo-trial participants after ingesting bLF. We found that daily ingestion of 3.0 g bLF promoted the expression of interferon alpha in the colon of the Tokyo-trial participants

Rat N-ERC/Mesothelin as a Marker for <i>In Vivo</i> Screening of Drugs against Pancreas Cancer

<div><p>Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) is a highly lethal disease, which is usually diagnosed in an advanced stage. We have established transgenic rats carrying a mutated K-<i>ras</i> gene controlled by Cre/loxP activation. The animals develop PDA which is histopathologically similar to that in humans. Previously, we reported that serum levels of N-ERC/mesothelin were significantly higher in rats bearing PDA than in controls. In the present study, to determine whether serum levels of N-ERC/mesothelin correlated with tumor size, we measured N-ERC/mesothelin levels in rats bearing PDA. Increased serum levels of N-ERC/mesothelin correlated with increased tumor size. This result indicates an interrelationship between the serum level of N-ERC/mesothelin and tumor size. We next investigated the effect of chemotherapy on serum N-ERC/mesothelin levels. Rat pancreatic cancer cells were implanted subcutaneously into the flank of NOD-SCID mice. In the mice treated with 200 mg/kg gemcitabine, tumor weight and the serum level of N-ERC/mesothelin were significantly decreased compared to controls. These results suggest that serum N-ERC/mesothelin measurements might be useful for monitoring response to therapy.</p></div

Comparison of serum levels of N-ERC/mesothelin in F344/DuCrlCrlj (F344), Slc:SD (SD) and Slc:Wistar/ST (Wistar) rat strains.

<p>(A) Strain differences in the serum levels of N-ERC/mesothelin. (B) Serum levels of N-ERC/mesothelin in males (closed bar) and females (open bar) of the different rat strains. *, P<0.0001; **, P<0.005; #, P<0.0001 compared with each other.</p

Comparison of serum levels of N-ERC/mesothelin in wild type Jcl:SD (W) and heterozygous (Hetero) and homozygous (Homo) Kras301 rats.

<p>Heterozygous Kras301 rats were generated by breeding homozygous Kras301 rats with wild type Jcl:SD rats. (A) Serum levels of N-ERC/mesothelin in wild type Jcl:SD rats and heterozygous and homozygous Kras301 rats. (B) Serum levels of N-ERC/mesothelin in male (closed bar) and female (open bar) wild type Jcl:SD rats and heterozygous and homozygous Kras301 rats. *, ** and #, P<0.0001 compared with each other.</p