Ovesná Z, Vachálková A, Horváthová K
Cancer Research Institute, Slovak Academy of Sciences, 833 91 Bratislava, Slovak Republic.
Neoplasma. 2004;51(6):407-14.
Substantial attention has been given to primary cancer prevention in daily life. Dietary factors are through to contribute to as much as one-third of the factors influencing the development of cancer. Ones of the components of a plant-based diet are beta-sitosterol and taraxasterol, compounds attracting our specific attention. This review summarizes the biological activities of presented phytosterols (anti-inflammatory, cholesterol-lowering, anti-microbial, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal effects). Our interest has been focussed especially on their anti-tumor and chemopreventive activity. They have been shown experimentally to inhibit colon and breast cancer development. They act at various stages of tumor development, including inhibition of tumorigenesis, inhibition of tumor promotion, and induction of cell differentiation. They effectively inhibit invasion of tumor cells and metastasis. With regard to toxicity, no obvious side effects of phytosterols have been observed in studies to date, with the exception of individuals with phytosterolemia. The exact mechanism by which dietary phytosterols act is not fully understood. However, some mechanisms have been offered. Therefore, they have a bright future in clinical application. Further investigation to explore their potential in tumor treatment may prove to be worthwhile.
日常生活中，人们对原发性癌症预防给予了极大关注。饮食因素被认为在影响癌症发生的因素中占比高达三分之一。植物性饮食的成分之一是β-谷甾醇和蒲公英甾醇，这些化合物尤其引起了我们的关注。本综述总结了上述植物甾醇的生物学活性（抗炎、降胆固醇、抗微生物、抗细菌、抗真菌作用）。我们的兴趣尤其集中在它们的抗肿瘤和化学预防活性上。实验表明，它们可抑制结肠癌和乳腺癌的发展。它们在肿瘤发展的各个阶段发挥作用，包括抑制肿瘤发生、抑制肿瘤促进以及诱导细胞分化。它们能有效抑制肿瘤细胞的侵袭和转移。关于毒性，迄今为止的研究中，除了患有植物甾醇血症的个体外，未观察到植物甾醇有明显的副作用。饮食中的植物甾醇发挥作用的确切机制尚未完全明确。然而，已经提出了一些机制。因此，它们在临床应用中有着光明的前景。进一步研究以探索它们在肿瘤治疗中的潜力可能是值得的。
