The interplay of exercise and green tea: a new road in cancer therapy

Exercise is one of the most important activities for every individual due to its proven health beneficials. Several investigations have highlighted the advantageous impacts of aerobic exercise, largely attributed to its capacity to enhance the body's capability to defend against threats against oxidative stress. The information currently accessible suggests that adding regular aerobic exercise to a daily routine greatly decreases the chances of developing serious cancer and passing away. An unevenness in the levels of free radicals and the body's antioxidant defenses, made up of enzyme and non-enzyme antioxidants, results in oxidative pressure. Generally, an imbalance in the levels of oxidative stress triggers the creation of harmful reactive oxygen or nitrogen compounds, causing the development or progression of numerous ailments, including cancer. The equilibrium between pro-oxidant and antioxidant substances is a direct indicator of this imbalance. Green tea and its derivatives are rich sources of bioactive substances such as flavonoids and polyphenols which possess antioxidant abilities. Moreover, modulation of epigenetic targets as well as inflammatory pathways including ERK1/2 and NF-κB are other proposed mechanisms for its antioxidant activity. Recent studies demonstrate the promise of green tea as an antioxidant, showing its ability to decrease the likelihood of developing cancer by impacting actions like cell growth, blood vessel formation, and spread of cancer cells. This summary will concentrate on the complex network of different pathways related to physical activity and consumption of green tea. In particular, the focus of this research will be on examining how oxidative stress contributes to health and investigating the potential antioxidant properties of green tea, and the interconnected relationship between exercise and green tea in the treatment of cancer. Elucidation of these different pathways would help scientists for development of better therapeutic targets and further increase of current anticancer agents efficiency.

A combination of myokines and genistein suppresses cancer stemness in MCF-7 human breast cancer cells

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES

Breast cancer is considered a serious health issue worldwide and is influenced by risk factors, including physical inactivity and unhealthy diet. Myokines secreted by muscles during physical activity play a crucial role in cancer development and the immune system. Genistein (Gen), an isoflavone primarily in legumes, induces anti-cancer activity by regulating cancer stem cells (CSCs). Therefore, this study investigated the potential anti-cancer effect of a combination of myokine and Gen on the human breast cancer MCF-7 cells.

MATERIALS/METHODS

MCF-7, a human breast cancer cell line, was used for in vitro study. The cell viability of MCF-7 cells was evaluated in response to treatment with myokines, irisin (Iri), oncostatin M (OSM), and Gen using the MTT assay. Clonogenic and sphere formation assays were used to evaluate the self-renewal capacity of breast CSCs. The mRNA expression levels of stem cell markers were analyzed in MCF-7 breast cancer cells.

RESULTS

Administering Iri or OSM with Gen significantly inhibited the self-renewal capacity of MCF-7 cells. In addition, mRNA expression of breast CSC markers SOX2 and OCT4, which are characteristic of CSCs, was suppressed by both myokine and Gen. However, combining Iri or OSM with Gen was the most effective treatment.

CONCLUSION

These results suggested that combining Iri or OSM with Gen has an additive effect on breast CSCs by regulating self-renewal capacity and expression of CSCs markers. Therefore, the combination of myokines and Gen may have the therapeutic potential for treating breast cancer and improving the quality of life of cancer patients.

A Brief Overview of the Effects of Exercise and Red Beets on the Immune System in Patients with Prostate Cancer

Research over the past few decades has focused on the use of functional ingredients such as an active lifestyle and proper diet as a treatment for many diseases in the world. Recent studies have shown a variety of health benefits for red beets and their active ingredients such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, blood pressure and fat reduction, anti-diabetic, and anti-obesity effects. This review article examines the effects of exercise and red beet consumption and the effective mechanisms of these two interventions on cellular and molecular pathways in prostate cancer. However, there is a significant relationship between an active lifestyle and proper diet with the incidence of cancer, and the use of these natural interventions for cancer patients in the treatment protocol of avoidance patients. Furthermore, this review article attempts to examine the role and effect of exercise and beetroot nutrition on prostate cancer and provide evidence of the appropriate effects of using natural interventions to prevent, reduce, and even treat cancer in stages. In addition, we examine the molecular mechanisms of the effectiveness of exercise and beetroot consumption. Finally, the use of natural interventions such as exercising and eating beets due to their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer properties, due to the lack or low level of side effects, can be considered an important intervention for the prevention and treatment of cancer.

Roles and molecular mechanisms of physical exercise in cancer prevention and treatment

Exercise can enhance motivation to change lifestyle behaviors, improve aerobic fitness, improve physical function, control fatigue, and enhance quality of life. Studies have demonstrated the benefits to be gained from physical exercise, highlighting the importance of popularizing the concept of physical exercise for individuals and making professional exercise-treatment programs available to patients with cancer. However, the correlation between physical exercise and carcinogenesis is easily overlooked, and exercise interventions are not routinely provided to patients with cancer, especially those with advanced cancer. In this article, we present a literature review of the effects of exercise on cancer development and progression and give recent evidence for the type of exercise best suited for different types of cancer and in different disease stages. Moreover, the molecular mechanisms about regulating metabolism and systemic immune function in cancer are summarized and discussed. In conclusion, physical exercise should be considered as an important intervention for preventing and treating cancer and its complications.

Exercise Activates p53 and Negatively Regulates IGF-1 Pathway in Epidermis within a Skin Cancer Model

Exercise has been previously reported to lower cancer risk through reducing circulating IGF-1 and IGF-1-dependent signaling in a mouse skin cancer model. This study aims to investigate the underlying mechanisms by which exercise may down-regulate the IGF-1 pathway via p53 and p53-related regulators in the skin epidermis. Female SENCAR mice were pair-fed an AIN-93 diet with or without 10-week treadmill exercise at 20 m/min, 60 min/day and 5 days/week. Animals were topically treated with TPA 2 hours before sacrifice and the target proteins in the epidermis were analyzed by both immunohistochemistry and Western blot. Under TPA or vehicle treatment, MDM2 expression was significantly reduced in exercised mice when compared with sedentary control. Meanwhile, p53 was significantly elevated. In addition, p53-transcriptioned proteins, i.e., p21, IGFBP-3, and PTEN, increased in response to exercise. There was a synergy effect between exercise and TPA on the decreased MDM2 and increased p53, but not p53-transcripted proteins. Taken together, exercise appeared to activate p53, resulting in enhanced expression of p21, IGFBP-3, and PTEN that might induce a negative regulation of IGF-1 pathway and thus contribute to the observed cancer prevention by exercise in this skin cancer model.

Reduced signaling of PI3K-Akt and RAS-MAPK pathways is the key target for weight-loss-induced cancer prevention by dietary calorie restriction and/or physical activity

Weight control through either dietary calorie restriction (DCR) or exercise has been associated with cancer prevention in animal models. However, the underlying mechanisms are not fully defined. Bioinformatics using genomics, proteomics and lipidomics was employed to elucidate the molecular targets of weight control in a mouse skin cancer model. SENCAR mice were randomly assigned into four groups for 10 weeks: ad-libitum-fed sedentary control, ad-libitum-fed exercise (AE), exercise but pair-fed isocaloric amount of control (PE) and 20% DCR. Two hours after topical TPA treatment, skin epidermis was analyzed by Affymetrix for gene expression, DIGE for proteomics and lipidomics for phospholipids. Body weights were significantly reduced in both DCR and PE but not AE mice versus the control. Among 39,000 transcripts, 411, 67 and 110 genes were significantly changed in DCR, PE and AE, respectively. The expression of genes relevant to PI3K-Akt and Ras-MAPK signaling was effectively reduced by DCR and PE but not AE as measured through GenMAPP software. Proteomics analysis identified ~120 proteins, with 27 proteins significantly changed by DCR, including up-regulated apolipoprotein A-1, a key antioxidant protein that decreases Ras-MAPK activity. Of the total 338 phospholipids analyzed by lipidomics, 57 decreased by PE including 5 phophatidylinositol species that serve as PI3K substrates. Although a full impact has not been determined yet, it appears that the reduction of both Ras-MAPK and PI3K-Akt signaling pathways is a cancer preventive target that has been consistently demonstrated by three bioinformatics approaches.

Weight control, endocrine hormones and cancer prevention

The prevalence of obesity is increasing which becomes worrisome due to its association with several diseases and certain types of cancers. While weight control through dietary caloric restriction and/or physical activity protects against cancer in animal models, the underlying mechanisms are not fully defined. Weight loss due to negative energy balance is associated with alterations of multiple growth factors and endocrine hormones. The altered hormones and hormone-related functions appear to be responsible for anti-cancer mechanisms. In this review, we summarize the recent studies related to weight loss and the altered endocrine hormones, focusing on the reduced levels of the mitogenic insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) and adipokine leptin as well as the raised levels of adiponectin and glucocorticoids. The potential molecular targets of these hormone-dependent signalling pathways are also discussed. Considering the increasing trends of obesity throughout the world, a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms between body weight, endocrine hormones and cancer risk may lead to novel approaches to cancer prevention and treatment.

Weight control and cancer preventive mechanisms: role of insulin growth factor-1-mediated signaling pathways

Overweight and obese not only increase the risk of cardiovascular disease and type-2 diabetes mellitus, but are also now known risk factors for a variety of cancers. Weight control, via dietary calorie restriction and/or exercise, has been demonstrated to be beneficial for cancer prevention in various experimental models, but the underlying mechanisms are still not well defined. Recent studies conducted in a mouse skin carcinogenesis model show that weight loss induced a significant reduction of the circulating levels of insulin growth factor (IGF)-1 and other hormones, including insulin and leptin, resulting in reduced IGF-1-dependent signaling pathways, i.e. Ras-MAPK proliferation and protein kinase B-phosphoinositide 3-kinase (Akt-PI3K) antiapoptosis. Selective targeting IGF-1 to Akt/mammalian target of rapamycin and AMP-activated protein kinase pathways, via negative energy balance, might inactivate cell cycle progression and ultimately suppress tumor development. This review highlights the current studies focused on the major role of reducing IGF-1-activated signaling via weight control as a potential cancer preventive mechanism.

Weight Loss via exercise with controlled dietary intake may affect phospholipid profile for cancer prevention in murine skin tissues

Exercise has been linked to a reduced cancer risk in animal models. However, the underlying mechanisms are unclear. This study assessed the effect of exercise with dietary consideration on the phospholipid profile in 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA)-induced mouse skin tissues. CD-1 mice were randomly assigned to one of the three groups: ad libitum-fed sedentary control; ad libitum-fed treadmill exercise at 13.4 m/min for 60 min/d, 5 d/wk (Ex+AL); and treadmill-exercised but pair-fed with the same amount as the control (Ex+PF). After 14 weeks, Ex+PF but not Ex+AL mice showed approximately 25% decrease in both body weight and body fat when compared with the controls. Of the total 338 phospholipids determined by electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry, 57 were significantly changed, and 25 species could distinguish effects of exercise and diet treatments in a stepwise discriminant analysis. A 36% to 75% decrease of phosphatidylinositol (PI) levels in Ex+PF mice occurred along with a significant reduction of PI 3-kinase in TPA-induced skin epidermis, as measured by both Western blotting and immunohistochemistry. In addition, approximately 2-fold increase of the long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, docosahexaenoic and docosapentaenoic acids, in phosphatidylcholines, phosphatidylethanolamines, and lysophosphatidylethanolamines was observed in the Ex+PF group. Microarray analysis indicated that the expression of fatty acid elongase-1 increased. Taken together, these data indicate that exercise with controlled dietary intake, but not exercise alone, significantly reduced body weight and body fat as well as modified the phospholipid profile, which may contribute to cancer prevention by reducing TPA-induced PI 3-kinase and by enhancing omega-3 fatty acid elongation.