Dietary fiber decreases colonic epithelial cell proliferation and protein synthetic rates in human subjects

Viraine Weerasooriya, Michael J. Rennie, Shri Anant, David H. Alpers, Bruce W. Patterson, Samuel Klein

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

14 Scopus citations

Abstract

Although it has been proposed that high fiber consumption can prevent proliferative diseases of the colon, the clinical data to support this hypothesis have been inconsistent. To provide a more robust measure of the effects of fiber on colonic mucosal growth than previous studies, we evaluated both cell proliferation and colonic mucosal protein synthesis in nine healthy volunteers after they consumed a typical Western diet (<20 g fiber/day) or a Western diet supplemented with wheat bran (24 g/day) in a randomized crossover design. Biopsies taken from the sigmoid colon were used to assess mucosal proliferation by determining proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) in crypt cells and to assess mucosal protein synthetic rate using stable isotopically labeled leucine infusion. Fiber supplementation produced a 12% decrease in labeling index (%crypt cells stained with PCNA) (P < 0.001) and an 11% decrease in mucosal protein fractional synthetic rate (FSR; P < 0.05). Moreover, mucosal protein FSR correlated directly with labeling index (r 2 = 0.22, P < 0.05). These data demonstrate that increased wheat bran consumption decreases colonic mucosal proliferation and support the potential importance of dietary fiber in preventing proliferative diseases of the colon.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)E1104-E1108
JournalAmerican Journal of Physiology - Endocrinology and Metabolism
Volume290
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - 2006

Keywords

  • Cancer
  • Metabolism
  • Short-chain fatty acids

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Dietary fiber decreases colonic epithelial cell proliferation and protein synthetic rates in human subjects'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this