DHEA and cancer

An article has been published in FEBS Lett 2002 Dec 4;532(1-2):153-8 that evaluates DHEA as a modulator of nerve cell differentiation, under the title "Synergistic effect of retinoic acid and dehydroepiandrosterone on differentiation of human neuroblastoma cells." by F. Silvagno et al. at Dipartimento di Genetica, Biologia e Biochimica, Facolta' di Medicina e Chirurgia, Universita' di Torino, Sezione di Biochimica, Via Santena 5 bis, 10126 Turin, Italy.

Retinoic acid (RA) affects many cell types by either promoting their survival or inducing their differentiation. Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), a precursor for both androgenic and estrogenic steroids and abundantly produced by brain, is known as an inhibitor of cell proliferation. Differentiation of a human neuroblastoma cell line (SK-N-BE) was evaluated measuring growth rate, motility, neurite extension and GAP-43 expression. We report that DHEA enhances the differentiating effect of RA on neuroblastoma cells via a signalling that is not RA receptor-mediated. Instead, we show a differential expression of matrix metalloproteinases: RA enhances the activity of MMP-2, whereas MMP-9 expression is up-regulated by DHEA. The concerted modulation of these proteinases may support the neurite outgrowth observed after co-treatment with the two drugs.

Another article published in Life Sci 2002 Apr 19;70(22):2623-30 shows that DHEA might be a strong chemopreventive agent for colon cancer. The article, under the title "Chemoprevention of precursors to colon cancer by dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA)." and authored by E. Osawa et al. at The Third Department of Internal Medicine, Yokohama City University School of Medicine, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan., is one of the many research papers suggesting the potential benefit of DHEA against cancer, although the research in this field is still inconclusive.

Although dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is recognized as one of the major adrenal androgens, its precise physiological role in the human endocrine system remains to be elucidated. In particular, the effect of DHEA on carcinogenesis has not been fully characterized. We undertook this study to determine whether DHEA has a chemopreventative effect on the precursors of colon cancer in a murine model of azoxymethane (AOM)-induced aberrant crypt foci (ACF). The number of ACF was significantly decreased in mice treated with 0.4% (p < 0.001) and 0.8% DHEA (p < 0.001), but there were no significant differences between DHEA-treated and control mice in terms of the ACF size, 3-catenin expression or level of dysplasia. This is the first study of colon cancer carcinogenesis demonstrating that DHEA treatment can decrease the number of ACF without apparently modifying their malignant potential. These data strongly suggest that DHEA might be a potential chemopreventative agent against human colon cancer.

DHEA or dehydroepiandrosterone is an endogenous intermediate steroid hormone produced by the adrenal glands. DHEA is called "mother of hormones", or prohormone because DHEA is further converted to generate 50 other essential hormones such as androgens (male hormones) or estrogens (female hormones) in the cells. DHEA is the most abundant hormone in our blood, and adequate blood DHEA or DHEA-S (dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate) level is critical for many vital hormonal and metabolic functions of our body.

Unfortunately, our body produces less and less DHEA as we age, and as a result, our blood DHEA (or DHEA-S) level decreases as we get older, generally falling significantly by the age of 30, and by as much as 50% by as 40.

DHEA Research Links