WOW "interferes with the tumor's ability to use linoleic acid as a growth signal"

AN "Electric light thought"?

STUNNING IMPLICATIONS?

This is about light and melatonin but for me misses the real point.

There have been a lot of posts on omega three and six on this site, and I have previously posted suggestions that excess omega six intake MAY be a magor factor in the increases in western diseases (including particularly breast cancer), AND that excess omega six is stimulating dormant evolutionary pathways, the bodies response to an excess of a fundamental nutritional fat which cannot be synthesised by the body.

We have seen lots of posts on the impact of omega three on breast cancer, often 70% differentials between high omega three and high omega six.

This is the first time I have seen linoleic acid (OMEGA 6) linked DIRECTLY to breast cancer cell growth regulation.

Omega six is a key factor in the eicosanoid pathway.

I have seen reports that omega six LIPIDS take part in cellular functions within cancerous cells, but not within healthy cells.

An omega three six balance of 1:1 or better is generally recognised as reflecting human intakes for thousands of years.

Recent omega three six balance in various contries is reported as 1-10 to 1-50.

In respect of excessive light - are those who live in the artic circle prone to higher breast cancer? Are they protected by fish intake?

Is the response to light just a shutdown slowdow of particular emergency repair process (the same pathway used by omega six ) that are replaced by other pathways of nighttime / sleep maintenance. (What would sleeping beauty's risk of breast cancer been?)




RB





http://washingtontimes.com/national/...4456-2045r.htm


ABSTRACT

Electric light thought to spur breast cancer

By Joyce Howard Price

..............Dr. David Blask , a neuroendocrinologist with the Bassett Research Institute and lead author of the study, explained that "many tumors are largely dependent on a nutrient called linoleic acid ... in order to grow."
Melatonin, he said, "interferes with the tumor's ability to use linoleic acid as a growth signal, which causes tumor metabolism and growth activity to shut down." ..........................

[sarah]

interesting. I've always been told not to take Melatonin because it's a hormone. I used to take it for time changes during travel.

More on omega three sixes and nines

RB



http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...=pubmed_docsum


1: In Vivo. 2005 Jan-Feb;19(1):221-4.
Related Articles, Links


Differential influence of pre- and post-delta-6-desaturation n6 polyunsaturated fatty acids on fibroblasts in culture, compared to n9 monounsaturated and n3 polyunsaturated fatty acids.

Davidson BC, Girao LA, Giangregorio A.

School of Physiology, University of the Witwatersrand Medical School, Parktown, Johannesburg, South Africa. davidsonbc@physiology.wits.ac.za

There is now considerable evidence that polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are effective in vitro at limiting the growth of cancer cells while not affecting normal cells to the same extent. Twenty carbon PUFA, especially of the n3 series, have been shown to be particularly potent; while the eighteen carbon n6 fatty acid, linoleic acid has been implicated in growth stimulation of breast cancer. We report here on the comparative effects of a range of eighteen and twenty carbon fatty acids of varying degrees of unsaturation on normal and transformed fibroblasts in culture. All moieties of the n3 series showed high potency in limiting transformed cell growth, while cis and trans monounsaturates and pre-delta-6-desaturation n6 polyunsaturates induced a mixed response, even inducing comparative growth stimulation with some fatty acid concentrations.
1: Breast Cancer Res Treat. 1995 Jun;34(3):199-212. Related Articles,

[CherylS]

If linoleic acid promotes tumor growth, then is the linoleic acid in my flax seed and evening primrose oil bad?

Good question. I hope this helps but I am no expert and it is best to read it all up yourself if you have the time.

My first confusion it took a while to sort out was the names

Omega 6 LinolEIC sometimes n6 or C-18:2

Omega 3 LinolINIC or Alpha-linolinic somtimes n3 or C-18:3

Please see the post on canola and subsidiary posts. The most widely accepted ideal ratio of omega three to omega six is reported as 1:1. If you look at the colon cancer post on the canola post you will see the best outcome was for a 1:1 ratio.

The body cannot make n3 or n6 so both are vital, but in the approriate ratio. It is suggested because most of the oils we regard as healty corn soy sunflower walnut are high in six, and hidden in many process food and we dont eat as much oily fish in the USA some have an n3:n6 of 1:50.

The post on article of interest the importance of Omega three and six in breast cancer is an essential read is this has caught your attention. Most of it is difficult to understand but what is important is to grasp the outline of the eicosanoid pathway and its implications which are immense.

Flax seed is one a few vegetable sources of high threes to sixes 16% n6 to 53% n3, Perillia 15% to 61% . SO GOOD.

The question of the omega six in primrose oil as discussed at length in a post about three weeks ago. Borage has lower n6. Essentially it is about balance. The problem is once you start looking you find n6 everywhere eg some Q10 capsules, beans in olive oil on the pack can mean beans in lots of sunflower and a little olive oil,,,,

The generality of information on lipids I have read is n3 all good, fish oil plus n3 better, omega six essentil but only up to 1:1 ration thereafter very BAD. GLA some good some bad jury is out, oleic some good some bad and you will see from the post on the canola item there is a suggestion it MAY be bad for some cell lines, and I have seen that suggestion elsewhere but rarely.

All of which I suppose suggests generally keep fat oil intake low, best from whole food sources, (eg walnuts although high in six are also exceptionally high in antioxidants nature preservation and protection for the oil in the nut I guess) strictly watch the six intake, if you want to go down the gla route look at the omega six factor as part of the overall intake.

It is complex but worthwhile reading up on. Everywhere I look fish oil / omega three seems to produce positive outcomes consistently in a whole heap of health fields. At the end of the day check it out for your self. I have only become a convert by reading and trying it. I am no expert, my comment is simply based on what I have read.

RB

Another abstract on melatonin and cancer but the real bombshell for me is this

ABSTRACT

In further experiments, Blask's team determined that melatonin blocks cancer cells' metabolism of linoleic acid, a polyunsaturated fat that's abundant in food. The same team had previously shown that 13-hydroxyoctadecadienoic acid, the product of linoleic acid metabolism, spurs cancer cells to divide.

Link

http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20060107/bob9.asp

[al from Canada]

http://www.dietobio.com/dossiers/en/nuts/fats.html

Al