title: Extract of fermented brown rice induces apoptosis of human colorectal tumor cells by activating mitochondrial pathway.
abstract: Brown rice fermented with Aspergillus oryzae, designated as FBRA, is a dietary fiber-rich food, and fully appreciated as one of the prebiotics, which are generally considered to be beneficial to the health of the body, because of stimulating the growth and/or the activity of bacteria in the digestive system. To assess the effectiveness of FBRA as a functional food, the direct effect of FBRA extract on human colorectal tumor cells was examined. The exposure of HCT116 cells to FBRA extract reduced their viabilities in a concentration-dependent manner, and the reduction of the cell viability might be attributed to the induction of apoptosis probably through the oxidative damage to the cells. Further studies showed that FBRA extract caused a significant elevation of Bax protein and a slight reduction of Bcl2 protein levels, and furthermore caused the activation of caspase-3 in the cells. Thus, it seems reasonable to conclude that FBRA extract can exert oxidative damage to the cells, resulting in apoptotic cell death by activating the mitochondrial pathway in human colorectal tumor cells. Therefore, daily intake of FBRA can be expected to be beneficial for preventing carcinogenesis and/or suppressing tumor growth in the digestive tract.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Neuropharmacology, Department of Nursing, Shikoku University School of Health Sciences, Ohjin, Tokushima, 771-1192, Japan. kmorita@shikoku-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Mari
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Itoh
authors.forename: Naoyoshi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nishibori
authors.forename: Takefumi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sagara
authors.forename: Yukiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Horie
authors.forename: Aya
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Motojima
authors.forename: Kyoji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Morita
mesh_terms: D017209:Apoptosis; D053148:Caspase 3 / Q000378:metabolism; D002470:Cell Survival; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism*; D005285:Fermentation; D045325:HCT116 Cells; D006801:Humans; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000378:metabolism*; D012275:Oryza / Q000737:chemistry*; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 / Q000378:metabolism; D017392:Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances / Q000032:analysis; D051028:bcl-2-Associated X Protein / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: C494826:BAX protein, human; D010936:Plant Extracts; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D017392:Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances; D051028:bcl-2-Associated X Protein; C505407:CASP3 protein, human; D053148:Caspase 3