DIM Reduces Cellular Inflammation

DIM Reduces Cellular Inflammation

Inhibition of nuclear translocation of nuclear factor-{kappa}B contributes to 3,3'-diindolylmethane-induced apoptosis in breast cancer cells.

Rahman KW, Sarkar FH.

Department of Pathology, Karmanos Cancer Institute, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI 48201, USA.

Carcinogenesis. 2005 Apr;26(4):771-8. Epub 2005 Jan 20.

Dietary indole-3-carbinol (I3C), a natural compound present in vegetables of the genus Brassica, showed clinical benefits and caused apoptosis in breast cancer cells. Our laboratory and others have shown that I3C induces apoptosis in breast cancer cells mediated by inactivation of Akt and nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) pathway. 3,3'-Diindolylmethane (DIM), a major in vivo acid-catalyzed condensation product of I3C, also showed some benefit in breast cancer. However, the precise molecular mechanism(s) by which DIM induces apoptosis in breast cancer cells has not been fully elucidated. Hence, we investigated whether DIM-induced apoptosis of breast cancer cells could also be mediated by inactivation of Akt and NF-kappaB. We found that DIM induces apoptotic processes in MCF10A derived malignant (MCF10CA1a) cell lines but not in nontumorigenic parental MCF10A cells. DIM specifically inhibits Akt kinase activity and abrogates the epidermal growth factor-induced activation of Akt in breast cancer cells, similar to those observed for I3C. We also found that DIM reduces phosphorylation of IkappaBalpha, an inhibitor of NF-kappaB. Our confocal microscopy study clearly showed that DIM blocks the translocation of p65, a subunit of NF-kappaB to the nucleus. DNA binding analysis and transfection studies with IkappaB kinase cDNA revealed that overexpression of IkappaB kinase mediates IkappaBalpha phosphorylation, which activates NF-kappaB, and this activation was completely abrogated by DIM treatment. Taken together, these results showed for the first time that the inactivation of Akt and NF-kappaB activity also plays important roles in DIM-induced apoptosis in breast cancer cells, which seems to be more relevant to in vivo situations.

PMID: 15665315 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

3,3'-Diindolylmethane inhibits angiogenesis and the growth of transplantable human breast carcinoma in athymic mice.

Chang X, Tou JC, Hong C, Kim HA, Riby JE, Firestone GL, Bjeldanes LF.

Department of Nutritional Sciences and Toxicology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.

Carcinogenesis. 2005 Apr;26(4):771-8. Epub 2005 Jan 20.

Studies have linked the consumption of broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables to a reduced risk of breast cancer. The phytochemical indole-3-carbinol (I3C), present in cruciferous vegetables, and its major acid-catalyzed reaction product 3,3'-diindolylmethane (DIM) have bioactivities relevant to the inhibition of carcinogenesis. In this study, the effect of DIM on angiogenesis and tumorigenesis in a rodent model was investigated. We found that DIM produced a concentration-dependent decrease in proliferation, migration, invasion and capillary tube formation of cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Consistent with its antiproliferative effect, which was significant at only 5 microM DIM, this indole caused a G1 cell cycle arrest in actively proliferating HUVECs. Furthermore, DIM downregulated the expression of cyclin-dependent kinases 2 and 6 (CDK2, CDK6), and upregulated the expression of CDK inhibitor, p27(Kip1), in HUVECs. We observed further in a complementary in vivo Matrigel plug angiogenesis assay that, compared with vehicle control, neovascularization was inhibited up to 76% following the administration of 5 mg/kg DIM to female C57BL/6 mice. Finally, this dose of DIM also inhibited the growth of human MCF-7 cell tumor xenografts by up to 64% in female athymic (nu/nu) mice, compared with the vehicle control. This is the first study to show that DIM can strongly inhibit the development of human breast tumor in a xenograft model and to provide evidence for the antiangiogenic properties of this dietary indole.

PMID: 15661811 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

DIM Down-Regulates the Dioxin Receptor:
Agonist and chemopreventative ligands induce differential transcriptional cofactor recruitment by aryl hydrocarbon receptor.

Hestermann EV, Brown M.

Department of Molecular Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Mol Cell Biol. 2003 Nov;23(21):7920-5.

Aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) is a transcription factor whose activity is regulated by environmental agents, including several carcinogenic agonists. We measured recruitment of AHR and associated proteins to the human cytochrome P4501A1 gene promoter in vivo. Upon treatment with the agonist beta-naphthoflavone, AHR is rapidly associated with the promoter and recruits the three members of the p160 family of coactivators as well as the p300 histone acetyltransferase, leading to recruitment of RNA polymerase II (Pol II) and induction of gene transcription. AHR, coactivators, and Pol II cycle on and off the promoter, with a period of approximately 60 min. In contrast, the chemopreventative AHR ligand 3,3'-diindolylmethane promotes AHR nuclear translocation and p160 coactivator recruitment but, remarkably, fails to recruit Pol II or cause histone acetylation. This novel mechanism of receptor antagonism may account for the antitumor properties of chemopreventative compounds targeting the AHR.