Lycopene in association with alpha-tocopherol inhibits at physiological concentrations proliferation of prostate carcinoma cells.

The effect of lycopene alone or in association with other antioxidants was studied on the growth of two different human prostate carcinoma cell lines (the androgen insensitive DU-145 and PC-3). It was found that lycopene alone was not a potent inhibitor of prostate carcinoma cell proliferation. However, the simultaneous addition of lycopene together with alpha-tocopherol, at physiological concentrations (less than 1 microM and 50 microM, respectively), resulted in a strong inhibitory effect of prostate carcinoma cell proliferation, which reached values close to 90 %. The effect of lycopene with alpha-tocopherol was synergistic and was not shared by beta-tocopherol, ascorbic acid and probucol.