Research Unveils How Fiber Byproducts Influence Gene Expression that May Have Anti-Cancer Actions
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A new study published in Nature Metabolism identified the direct epigenetic effects of two common byproducts of fiber digestion and found that some of the alterations in gene expression had anti-cancer actions.
When we eat fiber, the gut microbiome produces short-chain fatty acids. These compounds are more than just an energy source for us: They have long been suspected to indirectly affect gene function. The researchers traced how the two most common short-chain fatty acids in our gut, propionate and butyrate, altered gene expression in healthy human cells, in treated and untreated human colon cancer cells, and in mouse intestines. They found direct epigenetic changes at specific genes that regulate cell proliferation and differentiation, along with apoptosis, or pre-programmed cell death processes — all of which are important for disrupting or controlling the unchecked cell growth that underlies cancer.
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