The FISHGASTRO study: gene expression profiles in human colonic biopsies following a 6 month fish intervention

Gene expression profiles in human colonic biopsies following a 6 month fish intervention highlights the importance of interactions between diet and mucosal immunoregulation: the FISHGASTRO study. Data from population based studies indicate a strong association between risk of colon cancer and lifestyle, including diet. There is an increasing body of evidence to suggest that high fish intake may be protective. N-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, highly abundant in oily fish such as salmon, have been the focus of attention and several molecular mechanisms have been proposed to explain their anti-neoplastic activity. Other nutrients such as vitamin D and selenium (also found in lean fish) are well recognised as protective agents against many cancers, including colon cancer. The FISHGASTRO human intervention study was carried out to assess the impact of two types of fish, salmon and cod, on already established markers of gastrointestinal health and to search for novel biomarkers of cancer risk based on post-genomic technology. Keywords: Expression profiling by array In a parallel controlled feeding trial, colon samples were collected from apparently healthy human subjects at baseline and after 6 months consumption of either extra cod or salmon (both: 300g per week), which was given in addition to their regular diet. Biopsies were put immediately into RNAlater (Qiagen), and total RNA was isolated from the samples using the RNeasy Plus Mini kit (Qiagen). Total RNA (350 ng) was was labeled using a one-cycle cDNA labeling kit (MessageAmpTM II-Biotin Enhanced Kit, Ambion, Inc.) and hybridized to Affymetrix NuGO_Hs1a52018 arrays.