Knoflook ter voorkoming van (borst)kanker*

Verschillende kankers in het bijzonder borstkanker kunnen veroorzaakt worden de stof PhIP (2-AMINO-1-METHYL-6-PHENYLIMIDAZO[4,5-b]PYRIDINE), een stof die ontstaat bij het (te) heet bakken van vlees. De bio-actieve stof DAS (dallyl sulfide) uit knoflook kan deze ontwikkeling volledig doen stoppen blijkt uit een laboratoriumstudie.

Garlic Shown to Inhibit DNA Damaging Chemical in Breast Cancer
Legend suggests that garlic may ward off evil spirits, such as vampires. Now scientists are finding that garlic, or a flavor component of pungent herb, may help ward off carcinogens produced by meat cooked at high temperatures.
Cooking protein-rich foods like meats and eggs at high temperatures releases a chemical called PhIP, a suspected carcinogen. Epidemiological studies have shown that the incidence of breast cancer is higher among women who eat large quantities of meat, although fat and caloric intake and hormone exposure may contribute to this increased risk.
Diallyl sulfide (DAS), a flavor component of garlic, has been shown to inhibit the effects of PhIP that, when biologically active, can cause DNA damage or transform substances in the body into carcinogens.
Ronald D. Thomas, Ph.D., and a team of researchers at Florida A&M University in Tallahassee hypothesized that PhIP enhances the metabolism of the enzymes linked to carcinogenesis. They further suggested that the diallyl sulfide derived from garlic might counter this activity.
"We treated human breast epithelial cells with equal amounts of PhIP and DAS separately, and the two together, for periods ranging from three to 24 hours," said Thomas. "PhIP induced expression of the cancer-causing enzyme at every stage, up to 40-fold, while DAS completely inhibited the PhIP enzyme from becoming carcinogenic."
The finding demonstrates for the first time that DAS triggers a gene alteration in PhIP that may play a significant role in preventing cancer, notably breast cancer, induced by PhIP in well-done meats.
Thomas noted that no studies have shown a link between cooking vegetables and fruits and PhIP, regardless of the method used.
Diallyl Sulfide Antagonizes PhIP Induced Alterations in the Expression of Phase I and Phase II Metabolizing Enzymes in Human Breast Epithelial Cells
Abstract # 2543, Ronald Thomas, Florida A&M University, Tallahassee.
Poster Session A. 5:30 p.m., Monday, October 31, 2005.