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Revisit dietary fiber on colorectal cancer: butyrate and its role on prevention and treatment

Cancer and Metastasis Reviews volume 34, pages 465–478 (2015)Cite this article

Abstract

Colorectal cancer is still a major health problem worldwide. Based on the most recent released data by the World Health Organization GLOBOCAN in 2012, colorectal cancer is the third most prevalent type of cancer in males and the second in females. In 1999, it was published the first report showing evidence of a strong correlation between diet and cancer incidence, being its positive or negative impact intimately linked to dietary patterns. A diet rich in fiber is associated with a low risk of developing colorectal cancer. The fermentation of the dietary fiber by intestinal microflora results in production of butyrate, which plays a plurifunctional role on the colonocytes, and it has also been reported as a chemopreventive agent. However, there are limited studies focusing its anti-cancer potential. Here, we review the recent new insights that focus butyrate and its role in colorectal cancer prevention and treatment, from its synthesis, metabolism, and transport, through its involvement on several cancer-related signaling pathways, to the novel existing approaches for its clinical use.

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Acknowledgments

Ana Salomé Pires would like to thank the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology for the award of PhD scholarship (SFRH/BD/75300/2010).

Support: FCT, Portugal (Strategic Project PEst-C/SAU/UI3282/2013 and UID/NEU/04539/2013), COMPETE-FEDER.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have nothing to disclose.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biophysics Unit, Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    J. C. Encarnação, A. M. Abrantes, A. S. Pires & M. F. Botelho

  2. CNC.IBILI, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    J. C. Encarnação, A. M. Abrantes, A. S. Pires & M. F. Botelho

  3. Center of Investigation on Environmental, Genetics and Oncobiology (CIMAGO), Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    J. C. Encarnação, A. M. Abrantes & M. F. Botelho

  4. Faculty of Sciences and Technology, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    A. S. Pires

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  1. J. C. Encarnação
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  2. A. M. Abrantes
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  4. M. F. Botelho
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Correspondence to M. F. Botelho.

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Encarnação, J.C., Abrantes, A.M., Pires, A.S. et al. Revisit dietary fiber on colorectal cancer: butyrate and its role on prevention and treatment. Cancer Metastasis Rev 34, 465–478 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10555-015-9578-9

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Keywords

  • Colorectal cancer
  • Butyrate
  • Histone deacetylase inhibitors
  • Cancer prevention
  • Cancer therapy