title: Depletion of dietary arginine inhibits growth of metastatic tumor.
abstract: The effects of dietary arginine on the growth of a murine colon tumor metastatic to the liver were examined in a model of advanced neoplastic disease. Tumor growth was influenced by arginine both in vivo and in vitro. An arginine-supplemented diet stimulated tumor growth by 55% compared with controls. Conversely, an arginine-depleted diet inhibited tumor growth by 78% compared with controls. In vitro culture of both murine and human colon tumor cells confirmed that arginine was necessary for cell growth. Flow-cytometric analysis using propidium iodide and bromodeoxyuridine suggested that colon tumor cells cultured without arginine enter a quiescent S phase and depend on arginine for further growth and cell cycle progression. The potential roles for selective dietary arginine modulation in patients with cancer with advanced disease are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston 77036.
authors.forename: T J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Yeatman
authors.forename: G L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Risley
authors.forename: M E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Brunson
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000178:diet therapy / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000556:secondary*; D000818:Animals; D001120:Arginine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism*; D003110:Colonic Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D004032:Diet; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000178:diet therapy / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000556:secondary*; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured
chemical_list: D001120:Arginine