Sato Akira, Yabuki Ayano, Sato Genta, Nemoto Hina, Ogawa Yuta, Ohira Makoto
Department of Food and Nutritional Science, Miyagi Gakuin Women's University, Sendai, Japan;
Faculty of Pharmacy, Iryo Sosei University, Fukushima, Japan.
Anticancer Res. 2025 Jan;45(1):145-152. doi: 10.21873/anticanres.17401.
BACKGROUND/AIM: Breast cancer is mostly affected by estrogen, which promotes proliferation, tumorigenesis, and cancer progression. Estrogen sulfotransferase (SULT1E1) catalyzes sulfation to inactivate estrogens, whereas steroid sulfatase (STS) catalyzes estrogen sulfate hydrolysis to activate estrogens in breast cancer cells. Three major organosulfur compounds in garlic (Allium sativum L.), diallyl sulfide (DAS), diallyl disulfide (DADS), and diallyl trisulfide (DATS), are known to exert anticancer effects against breast cancer. This study aimed to investigate the effects of these compounds on proliferation and SULT1E1 and STS protein levels in breast cancer cells.
Cell proliferation and SULT1E1 and STS protein levels in MCF-7 breast cancer cells treated with DAS, DADS, and DATS were analyzed via 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide and western blotting assays, respectively.
DADS and DATS concentration-dependently inhibited MCF-7 cell proliferation. Specifically, DATS, followed by DADS and DAS (each 100 μmol/l), demonstrated the most significant inhibition of cell proliferation. DADS and DATS also decreased the STS protein levels. Notably, DAS, DADS, and DATS did not affect the SULT1E1 protein levels. In MCF-7 cells treated with DAS, DADS, and DATS, cell proliferation was positively correlated with STS protein expression.
Overall, our findings highlight the potential of DADS and DATS as promising agents for preventing and treating breast cancer by decreasing STS protein expression and suppressing active estrogen levels in breast cancer cells.
背景/目的：乳腺癌主要受雌激素影响，雌激素可促进细胞增殖、肿瘤发生及癌症进展。雌激素硫酸转移酶（SULT1E1）催化硫酸化作用使雌激素失活，而类固醇硫酸酯酶（STS）催化硫酸雌酮水解以激活乳腺癌细胞中的雌激素。大蒜（葱属植物）中的三种主要有机硫化合物，即二烯丙基硫醚（DAS）、二烯丙基二硫醚（DADS）和二烯丙基三硫醚（DATS），已知对乳腺癌具有抗癌作用。本研究旨在探讨这些化合物对乳腺癌细胞增殖以及SULT1E1和STS蛋白水平的影响。
分别通过3-（4,5-二甲基-2-噻唑基）-2,5-二苯基四氮唑溴盐和蛋白质印迹分析，检测经DAS、DADS和DATS处理的MCF-7乳腺癌细胞的增殖情况以及SULT1E1和STS蛋白水平。
DADS和DATS浓度依赖性地抑制MCF-7细胞增殖。具体而言，DATS对细胞增殖的抑制作用最为显著，其次是DADS和DAS（各100μmol/L）。DADS和DATS还降低了STS蛋白水平。值得注意的是，DAS、DADS和DATS不影响SULT1E1蛋白水平。在经DAS、DADS和DATS处理的MCF-7细胞中，细胞增殖与STS蛋白表达呈正相关。
总体而言，我们的研究结果表明，DADS和DATS有望通过降低STS蛋白表达并抑制乳腺癌细胞中活性雌激素水平，成为预防和治疗乳腺癌的有效药物。
