Vitamin E has been getting a lot bad press lately though many have attributed failed studies to using only one form of E when we all know there are 8 forms of Vitamin E. Therefore, I thought I'd do a search and see if I could find any studies on other forms of Vitamin E and what benefits they have revealed. I found two very promising that show how tocotrienols can protect DNA and how they can help prevent and battle cancer. I believe this shows that we should be supplementing all forms of Vitamin E not only alpha tocopherol which is what many companies produce. That being said I'm curious to know what dosage, forms and how often are the members here taking Vitamin E?
Tocotrienol build-up in tumours ‘critical’ for anti-cancer benefits: Study
http://www.nutraingr...-benefits-Study
Tocotrienols, members of the vitamin E family, may exert their anti-cancer benefits by accumulating in cancer cells and delaying tumour growth, says a new study from Japan.
Both gamma- and delta-tocotrienols may accumulate in cancer cells, and promote the death of the tumours, according to data from in vitro and in vivo studies by researchers from Kyushu University.
The potential anti-cancer benefits of tocotrienols are not new, but the Japanese researcher claim that their study is the first to show accumulation of the compounds in cancer cells.
“These results, to our knowledge, are the first demonstration of specific accumulation of gamma-tocotrienol and delta-tocotrienol in tumours and suggest that tocotrienols accumulation is critical for the anti-tumour activities of tocotrienols,” wrote lead author Yuhei Hiura in the The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry.
The vitamin E family
There are eight forms of vitamin E: four tocopherols (alpha, beta, gamma, delta) and four tocotrienols (alpha, beta, gamma, delta). Alpha-tocopherol is the main source found in supplements and in the European diet, while gamma-tocopherol is the most common form in the American diet.
Tocotrienols (TCT) are only minor components in plants, although several sources with relatively high levels include palm oil, cereal grains and rice bran.
While the majority of research on vitamin E has focused on alpha-Toc, studies into tocotrienols account for less than one per cent of all research into vitamin E.
New study
The Japanese researchers studied the effects of gamma- and delta-tocotrienol on mouse cancer cells (murine hepatoma MH134) both in vitro and in vivo. For the cell study, the tumour cells were cultured in the tocotrienols, and they found that the delta-version inhibited cell growth more than the gamma-type. This was related to an induction of apoptosis (programmed cell death).
For the animal studies, the researchers used C3H/HeN mice and implanted the tumour cells. The animals were then fed a normal diet, or the diet supplemented with 0.1 per cent gamma-tocotrienol or 0.1 per cent delta-tocotrienol for four weeks.
At the end of the study, a significant delay in tumour growth was observed for both groups supplemented with the tocotrienols. No effects on body weight were recorded.
“Intriguingly, we found that tocotrienols was detected in tumour, but not in normal tissues,” wrote the researchers.
In terms of the added that the tocotrienols had no effect on levels of immunoglobulin levels in the animals, suggesting that the tocotrienols’ potential anti-cancer benefits were not related to immune function, “and that the anti-tumour effect may be due to the direct effect of T3 on tumour cells”, they said.
“In conclusion, our results suggested that accumulation is critical for the anti-tumour activity of tocotrienols.”
Source: The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry
Published online ahead of print, doi: 10.1016/j.jnutbio.2008.06.004
“Specific accumulation of γ- and δ-tocotrienols in tumor and their antitumor effect in vivo”
Authors: Y. Hiura, H. Tachibana, R. Arakawa, N. Aoyama, M. Okabe, M. Sakai, K. Yamada
Tocotrienol may protect against DNA damage, says study
http://www.nutraingr...mage-says-study
By Stephen Daniells, 24-Sep-2007
Related topics: Research, Vitamins & premixes, Cancer risk reduction
Tocotrienols, the less studied form of vitamin E, may reduce DNA damage, considered an important trigger in cancer development, by about 50 per cent, new research suggests.
Researchers from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and tocotrienol-supplier, Golden Hope Bioganic, report that daily supplementation with a tocotrienol-rich supplement (Tri E Tocotrienol) showed greater effects in the older subjects, a sub-population with higher rates of DNA damage.
"The effect of Tri E Tocotrienol is more obvious in older age, possibly reflecting a greater need for supplementation or a greater profound effect due to the larger amount of damage present," wrote the authors, led by Siok-Fong Chin, in the journal Nutrition.
There are eight forms of vitamin E: four tocopherols (alpha, beta, gamma, delta) and four tocotrienols (alpha, beta, gamma, delta). Alpha-tocopherol (alpha-Toc) is the main source found in supplements and in the European diet, while gamma-tocopherol (gamma-Toc) is the most common form in the American diet.
Tocotrienols (TCT) are only minor components in plants, although several sources with relatively high levels include palm oil, cereal grains and rice bran.
While the majority of research on vitamin E has focused on alpha-Toc, studies into tocotrienols account for less than one per cent of all research into vitamin E.
This is slowly changing, and the new study reports the results of a randomised, double-blinded placebo-controlled study with 64 subjects aged 37 to 78 assigned to receive daily supplements of tocotrienol-rich vitamin E (160 mg/d, Tri E Tocotrienol, Golden Hope Bioganic) for six months. The supplement contained all four tocotrienols and alpha-Toc in a ratio of 74:26 per cent, respectively.
The researchers report that white blood cells from patients receiving the tocotrienol-rich supplement had significantly less DNA damage after three and six months of supplementation than those in the placebo group.
Significant reductions were also observed for urinary levels of 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), a marker for oxidative stress in the supplementation group, relative to placebo.
Supplementation with the tocotrienol-rich vitamin E also reduced the frequency of sister chromatid exchange (SCE), an exchange of genetic information between sister chromatids that may be related to tumours, particularly in the older participants (over 50).
The mechanism of protection is related to oxidative stress and the quenching of reactive oxygen species by vitamin E, said the researchers. The free radical theory of ageing (FRTA) places free radicals at the front of causes for deterioration of physiologic function as people get older.
"The results obtained suggested that supplementation with palm oil Tri E Tocotrienol reduced the level of DNA damage in healthy subjects, with a more pronounced effect observed in older adults," concluded the researchers. "These observations may indicate a possible relation between the molecular mechanisms involved in the formation and repair of DNA breaks with Tri E Tocotrienol supplementation."
Source: Nutrition (Elsevier)
Published on-line ahead of print, doi:10.1016/j.nut.2007.08.006
"Reduction of DNA damage in older healthy adults by Tri E Tocotrienol supplementation"
Authors: Siok-Fong Chin, N.A. Abdul Hamid, A.A. Latiff, Z. Zakaria, M. Mazlan, Y.A.M. Yusof, A.A.Karim, J. Ibahim, Z. Hamid and W.Z.W. Ngah
