INSERM/IRCAD

INSERM/IRCAD’s investigations are focused on colorectal cancer prevention, based on the observation that colorectal cancer is one of the most frequent cancers in France / Germany with 36.000 / 73.000 new cases each year (status: 2004). Dietary factors play a key role in the onset and development of this disease. It is well established that a high intake in fruits and vegetables associated with a low intake in saturated fats have protective effects.

Competencies:

The laboratory has accredited expertise in the domain of colorectal cancer chemoprevention and also has a long standing experience in studying the functional and molecular aspects of colon cancer development. Based on fundamental research achievements, the laboratory investigates chemopreventive and therapeutic strategies to block the promotion and progression of colon cancer. These strategies are tested in preclinical models.

Major research objectives:

• To identify chemical components naturally present in fruits and vegetables that are likely to inhibit the promotion and the development of colorectal cancer.
• To study and understand their mechanisms of action at a cellular and molecular level.
• To validate the potential of these components in the prevention as well as in the treatment of colon cancer in pre-clinical models of experimental colon carcinogenesis. In this regard new preclinical procedures have been developed involving 3D imaging methods by computed tomographic colonography in order to asses the chemopreventive efficacy of natural dietary phytoconstituents (mainly flavonoids) on colonic tumor-formation and -growth in animal models.