A new study by University of Guelph researchers shows avocados may protect the bone marrow against severe diseases, including leukemia.
The study, published in Nutrition and Cancer, was conducted on a mouse model of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), one of the most devastating types of leukemia, as well as a diet-induced form of obesity.
Over several weeks, researchers fed these mice a compound known as avocatin B, a molecule found mainly in avocados, and examined its impact on stem cells. Stem cells in the bone marrow usually create healthy blood cells, but in diseased states like leukemia and obesity, that process is disturbed.
Researchers showed, for the first time, that avocatin B slowed leukemia relapse and reoccurrence compared to control diets. It also led to an overall reduction in leukemia cells and a slowing of cancer cell growth rates.
The avocado molecule also improved cellular measures of obesity, supporting a 58 per cent recovery of healthy stem cells in the bone marrow. It also improved weight loss and restored sensitivity to insulin.
Leading the research was Dr. Paul Spagnuolo, professor in the Department of Food Science at U of G's Ontario Agricultural College. The Spagnuolo lab has been studying avocatin B for several years for its potential to regulate cell metabolism, with applications for cancer, diabetes and obesity.
"Changing what happens in the bone marrow is very difficult and there are few drugs that can do that during disease," Spagnuolo says. "To see these bone marrow changes with a dietary change is significant and very exciting."
Avocatin B could hold key to more treatment strategies, researchers say
High-fat foods, typical in Western diets, are believed to negatively impact stem cell function, leading to conditions like obesity. In turn, obesity can reduce chemotherapy effectiveness and cause further complications in leukemia onset, outcomes and recovery.
To combat this, avocatin B may protect stem cells and inhibit the growth of cancer cells, researchers say, by intervening in a critical cellular process known as fatty acid oxidation.
Inhibiting this process could aid with the treatment of other kinds of cancer, including neuroblastoma and breast cancer.
Research team led by Dr. Paul Spagnuolo (left) has been investigating avocatin B for several years for its potential to regulate cell metabolism in other diseases
As such, avocados may hold the key to improving obesity and supporting leukemia recovery, imparting critical protections on the bone marrow.
Further research is needed to examine longer durations of time and confirm its applicability to humans.
Spagnuolo says, "We hope this provides a platform for additional studies that will eventually look at dietary interventions for those suffering from cancer or other metabolic conditions."
Research was supported by grants to Spagnuolo by the American Institute for Cancer Research and the University of Guelph and to Dr. Nawaz Ahmed by Mitacs Canada. Spagnuolo is the founder of SP Nutraceuticals Inc.
