Our research has shown that omega-3 fatty acids can incorporate into the developing mammary gland of the mice. This is relevant because the alteration of cellular membrane phospholipid composition may influence the functionality of proteins involved in cell growth, tissue structure and long term breast cancer risk. Overall, lifelong exposure of omega-3 fatty acids in a novel transgenic mouse model of breast cancer was causally linked to reduced tumour size and numbers. These lines of evidence demonstrate the importance of omega-3 fatty acids throughout life for mitigating and preventing breast cancer.
Relevant publications from Ma Lab.
Maclennan MB, Clarke SE, Perez K, Wood GA, Muller WJ, Kang JX, David WL Ma. Mammary tumor development is directly inhibited by lifelong n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. J Nutr Biochem. 2013 Jan;24(1):388-95. doi: 10.1016/j.jnutbio.2012.08.002. Epub 2012 Sep 29. PMID: 23026490
Mira B. MacLennan, Breanne M. Anderson and David WL Ma. Differential Mammary Gland Development in FVB and C57Bl/6 Mice: Implications for Breast Cancer Research. Nutrients. 2011 Nov;3(11):929-36. Epub 2011 Oct 25. PMID: 22254086
Mira MacLennan and David WL Ma. Role of dietary fatty acids in mammary gland development and breast cancer. Breast Cancer Research, 2010 Oct 26;12(5):211. PMID: 21067551
David W.L. Ma, Victoria Ngo, Pedro Huot, and Jing X. Kang. n-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Endogenously Synthesized in Fat-1 mice are Enriched in the Mammary Gland. Lipids. 2006, 41, 35-39. PMID: 16555469.