TWO QUEENS
So I ask
myself: “Which three vegetables do you least like to eat?” The answer readily pops out: “broccoli,
Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower!”
Turns out that these three malignant vegetables, and others that I also
don’t like, contain a substance – indole 3 carbinol, or I3C - that is an active
agent against cancer. Why couldn’t the
good stuff have been in strawberries, peaches, and chocolate?
This somewhat
unwelcome bit of news is derived from important research recently published,
supported by the NCI. To summarize and
oversimplify:
You all have
known for years that there are two kinds of genes (actually, proteins they code
for) that are implicated in most cancers.
These are tumor-suppressor genes and oncogenes. When out of whack due to mutation, either of
these can be responsible for tumor growth.
Most cancer therapies have been aimed at
oncogenes. MYC, for instance, is a gene
that is necessary for cell growth. When
mutated, it can cause uncontrolled growth – i.e., a tumor. But, because MYC plays a vital role in normal
cellular activity, it is tricky to fiddle with.
Well, some
smart folks in Boston have approached the problem in an entirely new way. Instead of trying to discourage the
oncogenes, they have elected to encourage the tumor suppressors.
To
comprehend what they are doing you really ought to read the link at the bottom
of the page. But because I know you
won’t, here is a clumsy summary:
Something
called PTEN (apparently a “signaling sequence”), an important tumor suppressor,
somehow is “silenced” in certain cancers.
The culprit, it turns out, is something called WWP1 – which just happens
to be “regulated” by the aforesaid MYC. And
guess what they found that helped stifle WWP1?
Why, I3C, of course. They are
looking for something more potent, but so far, no luck. Clinical trials loom just over the
horizon. Many mice already are
dying.
So, eat your
greens, dammit! It is possible to buy
I3C over-the-counter as a health supplement, but I am not rushing out to buy
some.
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