Dietary leucine supplementation minimises tumour-induced damage in placental tissues of pregnant, tumour-bearing rats

Background: The occurrence of cancer during pregnancy merges two complex, poorly understood metabolic and hormonal conditions. This association can exacerbate the conditions of both the mother and the foetus. The branched-chain amino acid leucine enhances cellular activity, particularly by increasing protein synthesis. This study aimed to analyse the modulatory effect of a leucine-rich diet on direct and indirect tumour-induced placental damage. This was accomplished by evaluating the expression of genes involved in protein synthesis and degradation and assessing anti-oxidant enzyme activity in placental tissues collected from pregnant, tumour-bearing rats. Results: Pregnant rats were either implanted with Walker 256 tumour cells or injected with ascitic fluid (to study the indirect effects of tumour growth) and then fed a leucine-rich diet. Animals in a control group underwent the same procedures but were fed a normal diet. On the 20th day of pregnancy, tumour growth was observed. Dams fed a normoprotein diet showed the greatest tumour growth. Injection with ascitic fluid mimicked the effects of tumour growth. Decreased placental protein synthesis and increased protein degradation were observed in both the tumour-bearing and the ascitic fluid-injected groups that were fed a normoprotein diet. These effects resulted in low placental DNA and protein content and high lipid peroxidation (measured by malondialdehyde content). Decreased placental protein synthesis-related gene expression was observed in the tumour group concomitant with increased expression of genes encoding protein degradation-associated proteins and proteolytic subunits. Conclusions: Consumption of a leucine-rich diet counteracted the effects produced by tumour growth and injection with ascitic fluid. The diet enhanced cell signalling, ameliorated deficiencies in DNA and protein content, and balanced protein synthesis and degradation processes in the placenta. The improvements in cell signalling included changes in the mTOR/eIF pathway. In conclusion, consumption of a leucine-rich diet improved placental metabolism and cell signalling in tumour-bearing rats, and these changes reduced the deleterious effects caused by tumour growth16CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQFUNDAÇÃO DE AMPARO À PESQUISA DO ESTADO DE SÃO PAULO - FAPESP302863/2013-32010/00209-9; 2011/08276-0; 2013/16115-

Selecting green suppliers based on GSCM practices: Using Fuzzy TOPSIS applied to a Brazilian electronics company

Due to an increased awareness and significant environmental pressures from various stakeholders, companies have begun to realize the significance of incorporating green practices into their daily activities. This paper proposes a framework using Fuzzy TOPSIS to select green suppliers for a Brazilian electronics company; our framework is built on the criteria of green supply chain management (GSCM) practices. An empirical analysis is made, and the data are collected from a set of 12 available suppliers. We use a fuzzy TOPSIS approach to rank the suppliers, and the results of the proposed framework are compared with the ranks obtained by both the geometric mean and the graded mean methods of fuzzy TOPSIS methodology. Then a Spearman rank correlation coefficient is used to find the statistical difference between the ranks obtained by the three methods. Finally, a sensitivity analysis has been performed to examine the influence of the preferences given by the decision makers for the chosen GSCM practices on the selection of green suppliers. Results indicate that the four dominant criteria are Commitment of senior management to GSCM; Product designs that reduce, reuse, recycle, or reclaim materials, components, or energy; Compliance with legal environmental requirements and auditing programs; and Product designs that avoid or reduce toxic or hazardous material use. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

[10]-gingerol induces apoptosis and inhibits metastatic dissemination of triple negative breast cancer in vivo

There is increasing interest in the use of non-toxic natural products for the treatment of various pathologies, including cancer. In particular, biologically active constituents of the ginger oleoresin (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) have been shown to mediate anti-tumour activity and to contribute to the anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antimicrobial, and antiemetic properties of ginger. Here we report on the inhibitory properties of [10]-gingerol against metastatic triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) in vitro and in vivo. We show that [10]-gingerol concentration-dependently induces apoptotic death in mouse and human TNBC cell lines in vitro. In addition, [10]-gingerol is well tolerated in vivo, induces a marked increase in caspase-3 activation and inhibits orthotopic tumour growth in a syngeneic mouse model of spontaneous breast cancer metastasis. Importantly, using both spontaneous and experimental metastasis assays, we show for the first time that [10]-gingerol significantly inhibits metastasis to multiple organs including lung, bone and brain. Remarkably, inhibition of brain metastasis was observed even when treatment was initiated after surgical removal of the primary tumour. Taken together, these results indicate that [10]-gingerol may be a safe and useful complementary therapy for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer and warrant further investigation of its efficacy, either alone or in combination with standard systemic therapies, in pre-clinical models of metastatic breast cancer and in patients

Dietary Leucine Supplementation Minimises Tumour-induced Damage In Placental Tissues Of Pregnant, Tumour-bearing Rats.

The occurrence of cancer during pregnancy merges two complex, poorly understood metabolic and hormonal conditions. This association can exacerbate the conditions of both the mother and the foetus. The branched-chain amino acid leucine enhances cellular activity, particularly by increasing protein synthesis. This study aimed to analyse the modulatory effect of a leucine-rich diet on direct and indirect tumour-induced placental damage. This was accomplished by evaluating the expression of genes involved in protein synthesis and degradation and assessing anti-oxidant enzyme activity in placental tissues collected from pregnant, tumour-bearing rats. Pregnant rats were either implanted with Walker 256 tumour cells or injected with ascitic fluid (to study the indirect effects of tumour growth) and then fed a leucine-rich diet. Animals in a control group underwent the same procedures but were fed a normal diet. On the 20(th) day of pregnancy, tumour growth was observed. Dams fed a normoprotein diet showed the greatest tumour growth. Injection with ascitic fluid mimicked the effects of tumour growth. Decreased placental protein synthesis and increased protein degradation were observed in both the tumour-bearing and the ascitic fluid-injected groups that were fed a normoprotein diet. These effects resulted in low placental DNA and protein content and high lipid peroxidation (measured by malondialdehyde content). Decreased placental protein synthesis-related gene expression was observed in the tumour group concomitant with increased expression of genes encoding protein degradation-associated proteins and proteolytic subunits. Consumption of a leucine-rich diet counteracted the effects produced by tumour growth and injection with ascitic fluid. The diet enhanced cell signalling, ameliorated deficiencies in DNA and protein content, and balanced protein synthesis and degradation processes in the placenta. The improvements in cell signalling included changes in the mTOR/eIF pathway. In conclusion, consumption of a leucine-rich diet improved placental metabolism and cell signalling in tumour-bearing rats, and these changes reduced the deleterious effects caused by tumour growth

[10]-gingerol is a potent inhibitor of breast cancer metastasis in vivo

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