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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Little Rock, Arkansas » Microbiome and Metabolism Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #266771
Title: Bidirectional Signaling of Mammary Epithelium and Stroma: Implications for Breast Cancer—Preventive Actions of Dietary Factors

Author
item SU, YING - Arkansas Children'S Nutrition Research Center (ACNC)
item SHANKAR, KARTIK - Arkansas Children'S Nutrition Research Center (ACNC)
item RAHAL, OMAR - University Arkansas For Medical Sciences (UAMS)
item SIMMEN, ROSALIA - Arkansas Children'S Nutrition Research Center (ACNC)

Submitted to: Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/18/2010
Publication Date: 7/1/2011
Citation: Su, Y., Shankar, K., Rahal, O., Simmen, R.C. 2011. Bidirectional Signaling of Mammary Epithelium and Stroma: Implications for Breast Cancer—Preventive Actions of Dietary Factors. Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry. 22(7):605-611.

Interpretive Summary: This invited review provides a model by which dietary factors, by targeting both the mammary epithelial cells and mammary stromal compartment, can decrease risk for breast cancer.

Technical Abstract: The mammary gland is composed of two major cellular compartments: a highly dynamic epithelium that undergoes cycles of proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis in response to local and endocrine signals and the underlying stroma comprised of fibroblasts, endothelial cells, and adipocytes that collectively form the mammary fat pad. Breast cancer originates from subversions of normal growth regulatory pathways in mammary epithelial cells due to genetic mutations and epigenetic modifications in tumor suppressors, oncogenes, and DNA repair genes. Diet is considered a highly modifiable determinant of breast cancer risk; thus, considerable efforts are focused on understanding how certain dietary factors may promote resistance of mammary epithelial cells to growth dysregulation. The recent indications that stromal cells contribute to the maintenance of the mammary epithelial ‘niche’ and the increasing appreciation for adipose tissue as an endocrine organ with a complex secretome, have led to the novel paradigm that the mammary stromal compartment is itself a relevant target of bioactive dietary factors. In this review, we address the potential influence of dietary factors on mammary epithelial-stromal bidirectional signaling to provide mechanistic insights into how dietary factors may promote early mammary epithelial differentiation to decrease adult breast cancer risk.