Evaluating Anticancer and Immunomodulatory Effects of <i>Spirulina</i> (Arthrospira) <i>platensis</i> and Gamma-Tocotrienol Supplementation in a Syngeneic Mouse Model of Breast Cancer

oleh: Hemavathy Subramaiam, Wan-Loy Chu, Ammu Kutty Radhakrishnan, Srikumar Chakravarthi, Kanga Rani Selvaduray, Yih-Yih Kok

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2021-07-01

Deskripsi

Nutrition can modulate host immune responses as well as promote anticancer effects. In this study, two nutritional supplements, namely gamma-tocotrienol (γT3) and <i>Spirulina,</i> were evaluated for their immune-enhancing and anticancer effects in a syngeneic mouse model of breast cancer (BC). Five-week-old female BALB/c mice were fed <i>Spirulina</i>, γT3, or a combination of <i>Spirulina</i> and γT3 (<i>Spirulina</i> + γT3) for 56 days. The mice were inoculated with 4T1 cells into their mammary fat pad on day 28 to induce BC. The animals were culled on day 56 for various analyses. A significant reduction (<i>p</i> < 0.05) in tumor volume was only observed on day 37 and 49 in animals fed with the combination of γT3 + <i>Spirulina</i>. There was a marked increase (<i>p</i> < 0.05) of CD4/CD127<sup>+</sup> T-cells and decrease (<i>p</i> < 0.05) of T-regulatory cells in peripheral blood from mice fed with either γT3 or <i>Spirulina.</i> The breast tissue of the combined group showed abundant areas of necrosis, but did not prevent metastasis to the liver. Although there was a significant increase (<i>p</i> < 0.05) of MIG-6 and Cadherin 13 expression in tumors from γT3-fed animals, there were no significant (<i>p</i> > 0.05) differences in the expression of MIG-6, Cadherin 13, BIRC5, and Serpine1 upon combined feeding. This showed that combined γT3 + <i>Spirulina</i> treatment did not show any synergistic anticancer effects in this study model.