Oncogenic ras alters sensitivity of mouse colonocytes to butyrate and fatty acid mediated growth arrest and apoptosis

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and butyrate favorably modulate colonocyte proliferation and apoptosis. In order to elucidate how oncogenic Ras modulates responses to these chemopreventive nutrients, we incubated isogenic non-transformed and Ras malignant transformed mouse colon cells with butyrate and DHA or linoleic acid (LA). Combining DHA with 1 mM butyrate decreased proliferation relative to LA or no PUFA treatment in both cell lines. At a higher butyrate dose (5 mM), caspase 3 activity was elevated to a greater extent in Ras transformed cells. Only non-transformed cells were sensitive to the apoptogenic effects of DHA, indicating that Ras transformation alters sensitivity to dietary chemopreventive agents.