Our study explored the influence of diet on gliomagenesis and associated systemic effects (SE) in rats. The experimental diet contained various ingredients supposed to interfere with carcinogenesis, mainly phytochemicals (PtcD for phytochemical diet) and its effects were compared to those of the same diet without the phytochemicals (BD for basal diet). Glioma was induced by ethylnitrosourea to pregnant females fed the diets from the start of gestation until the moment of sacrifice of the offpsrings. In male rats fed the PtcD or the BD the incidence of gliomas was markedly reduced compared to rats fed a standard diet (StD). In females this effect was weaker and was limited to the PtcD. A significant proportion of rats with brain tumors and fed the StD exhibited SE evidenced by weight loss, a shorter survival, reduction in liver weight and an increased proportion of liver mitochondria, effects that were not observed in their counterpart fed PtcD. Comparison of the expression of genes involved in the balance proliferation/apoptosis and in the response to oxidative stress in male brain tumors showed that the prevention of SE was associated with an increase in bcl-2 and catalase and a decrease in ki-67, sod-1 and sod-2 transcripts. These results show that the degree of agressiveness of gliomas can be modulated by dietary interventions and suggest that some phytochemicals with antioxidant properties could participate to the mechanism.
(c) 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.