Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), a derivative of ω3- polyunsaturated fatty acids present in fish oil, is well known to have anticancer activity on colon cancer cells, but the molecular and cellular mechanisms remain to be further clarified. In this study, anti-cancer effects of DHA on colon cancer cells were observed in a nude mouse HCT-15 xenograft model. And then, the different genes expression and signal pathways involved in this process were screened and identified using cDNA microarray analysis. Results of genes expression profiles indicated a reprogramming pattern of previously known and unknown genes and transcription factors associated with the action of DHA on colon cancer cells. And several genes related to tumor growth and metastasis including COX2, HIF-1α, VEGF-A, COMP, MMP-1, MMP-9, SCP2, SDC3, which were down-regulated by DHA, were further confirmed in HCT-15 cell line using RT-PCR method. In summary, our data might provide novel information for anti-cancer mechanism of DHA in colon cancer model.
Keywords: DHA; colon cancer; in vivo; microarray analysis; nude mice.