A Compound found in Cannabis May Prevent the Spread of Breast Cancer

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A Compound found in Cannabis May Prevent the Spread of Breast Cancer

http://www.vitasearch.com/CP/weeklyupdates/

Reference: " Cannabidiol as a novel inhibitor of Id-1 gene expression in

aggressive breast cancer cells, " McAllister SD, Christian RT, et al,

Molecular Cancer Therapeutics, 2007; 6(11): 2921-7. (Address: California

Pacific Medical Center, Research Institute, 475 Brannan Street, San

Francisco, CA 94107, USA. E-mail: mcallis@... ).

Summary: In a study involving aggressive human breast cancer cells,

cannabidiol - a compound found in cannabis with a low-toxicity profile -

was found to block the activity of a gene called Id-1, thereby reducing

the aggressiveness of the cancer cells. In previous research, the

authors had determined that metastatic breast cancer cells were less

invasive and less metastatic when Id-1 was down-regulated. In this

study, cannabidiol (CBD) was found to down regulate Id-1 expression in

aggressive human breast cancer cells; the concentrations effective at

doing so correlated with the concentrations required to inhibit the

proliferative and invasive phenotype of breast cancer cells. In a

concentration-dependent manner, CBD inhibited Id-1 expression at the

mRNA and protein level. According to the authors, the effects of CBD

appear to result from the inhibition of the Id-1 gene at the promoter

level. CBD did not inhibit invasiveness in cells that ectopically

expressed Id-1. The authors c onclude that, " …CBD represents the first

nontoxic exogenous agent that can significantly decrease Id-1 expression

in metastatic breast cancer cells leading to the down-regulation of

tumor aggressiveness. " Given the limited therapeutic interventions

available for the treatment of aggressive and metastatic breast cancer,

and given the toxicity and other side effects associated with

chemotherapy, these results offer hope that a non-toxic alternative to

chemotherapy may be on the horizon.

--

ne Holden, MS, RD < fivestar@... >

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