The type of diet and lifestyle directly affect health and can help prevent diseases or, on the contrary, promote their appearance when our habits and the foods we choose are unhealthy. In addition, numerous scientific studies have also shown the influence of the intestinal microbiome (a set of microorganisms such as viruses, bacteria, fungi, etc., and their interactions) on our physical and emotional well-being.
New research has now shown that the gut microbiome may be a key factor in breast health. The results of the study have been published in Microbiology Spectrum, a journal of the American Society for Microbiology, and reveal that flax seed components known as lignans mediate the relationship between intestinal microorganisms and the expression of gland microRNAs. mammary (miRNAs). A subset of these miRNAs regulate genes involved in breast cancer, including genes that control cell proliferation and migration.
“The microbiota of the gastrointestinal tract plays an important role in modifying many components of our diet to impact human health,” said Jennifer Auchtung, assistant professor in the Department of Food Science and Technology at the University of Nebraska. Lincoln and the editor who coordinated the review of the work.
“In this study, we found correlations between flaxseed-enriched diets, cecal microbiota composition, and miRNA profiles in the mammary gland that regulate many pathways, including those involved in cancer development. “This preliminary study supports further investigation into the role the microbiota plays in dietary approaches to reduce risk factors associated with the disease.”
Prevent breast cancer with a dietary intervention
The researchers studied the effects of flax seeds on the microbiota of young female mice. Lignans, fiber-associated compounds found in many foods and especially abundant in flaxseed, are associated with reduced breast cancer mortality in postmenopausal women. The researchers found that lignans generate specific miRNA responses in the mammary gland.
Lignans, fiber-associated compounds that are especially abundant in flaxseed, are associated with reduced breast cancer mortality in postmenopausal women
To determine whether the relationship between the microbiota and miRNAs of the mammary gland could be manipulated to reduce the risk of breast cancer, the researchers fed flax seeds to female mice to test whether intestinal cecal microbiota profiles are related to miRNA expression in the mammary gland. The cecum, the first part of the colon, located in the lower right part of the abdomen near the appendix, is believed to play a role in the production of short-chain fatty acids and has been proposed to serve as a reservoir for anaerobic bacteria.
A flaxseed oil lignan requires microbial processing to release bioactive metabolites, small molecule chemicals that are produced during metabolism and influence physiology and disease; in this case, they have antitumor effects. The researchers discovered that the microbiota and miRNA of the mammary gland are related and that flaxseed lignans modify the relationship so that they do not cause cancer.
“If these findings are confirmed, the microbiota becomes a new target to prevent breast cancer through dietary intervention,” concludes Elena M. Comelli, associate professor in the Department of Nutritional Sciences and the Temerty School of Medicine of the University of Toronto, and one of the authors of the article.
