Effects of the polyunsaturated fatty acids, EPA and DHA, on hematological malignancies: a systematic review.

INTRODUCTION

Omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are members of a large group of fatty acids (FAs) possessing multiple double bonds in their structures [ 1 ]. These biologically active macromolecules are well known to have various vital physiological roles required for proper functioning of cells [ 1 ]. Many effects of these FAs are mediated by their more active longer chain metabolites which act via changing the plasma membrane composition, producing various inflammatory mediators and altering the expression of different genes. Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) are among the very long chain PUFAs for which various health benefits have been shown. These FAs decrease the risk of cardiovascular diseases by regulating the contributing risk factors including blood pressure, blood coagulation, cardiac rhythm and heart rate among many others [ 2 – 4 ]. Anti-inflammatory [ 5 ] and immune modulatory effects [ 1 , 6 ] and the regulation of several metabolic pathways by these FAs have been also reported giving them the potential to be therapeutically exploited in the treatment of inflammatory diseases, metabolic disorders such as type-2 diabetes and immunocompromising conditions.

An epidemiological study in 1997 revealed that decreased incidence of colorectal cancer among South African West Coast fishermen who generally had a less healthy diet in comparison with the urban population, could be attributed to presence of fish oil in their diet [ 7 ]. Dietary intake of omega-3 FAs has been also shown in human studies to inversely correlate with the overall risk of different types of malignancies such as colorectal, prostate and breast cancer [ 8 – 10 ]. A substantial number of in vitro studies on cancer cell lines as well as studies on animal models of cancers have shown the anti-proliferative, apoptotic, cytotoxic, and anti-metastatic properties of DHA and EPA [ 11 ]. Keeping in mind that ROS can decrease cancer cell survival [ 12 ], different mechanisms have been suggested for the anti-cancer effects of DHA and EPA such as induction of ROS and consequent peroxidation of lipids [ 13 , 14 ], changing the composition of the plasma membrane and lipid rafts [ 15 , 16 ], affecting the mitochondrial membrane potential [ 17 ] and epigenetic alteration of genes involved in apoptosis [ 18 ].

Potential drug sensitizing effects of DHA and EPA have also been reported in numerous studies such that low amounts of these two FAs in combination with anticancer agents can result in increased sensitivity of cancer cells to anti-neoplastic agents even in some drug-resistant cell lines [ 19 ]. Recent evidence also points at the potent and at the same time selective actions of EPA and DHA on multiple myeloma cell lines which had not been previously investigated [ 20 ]. Most of the well-established anti-cancer effects of these PUFAs have been studied in solid tumors. Although ample data is available regarding the effects of DHA and EPA on haematological malignancies, still there is ambiguity regarding the exact mechanisms responsible for their actions on haematological cancers. In the present study, we systematically reviewed the effects of DHA and EPA on different leukemic and multiple myeloma cells with particular focus on the potential mechanisms of action. Moreover, we review the current evidence on the bioavailability and applicability of EPA and DHA for their clinical use in the context of haematological cancers.

Search strategy and data extraction

In order to access the relevant data, a literature search was performed based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The authors explored the Web of Science, Pubmed, and Scopus databases using the following keywords: “Leukemia” AND “DHA OR EPA”, “Multiple Myeloma” AND “DHA OR EPA”, and “Lymphoma” AND “DHA OR EPA”. EPA and DHA are abbreviations which are frequently used to show eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids, respectively. In total, 674 published papers were retrieved after applying the filter of “articles in English only”. After removing the duplicates, the articles were screened based on their relevance to the topic and all irrelevant papers were excluded. The studies where the term “lymphoma” was detected in the context of the extended form of bcl-2 (B cell lymphoma 2) and were found irrelevant to the topic were also removed. The full texts of the remaining papers (n=150) were further evaluated for the eligibility and relevance of their findings. All discrepancies were subjected to discussion until proper conclusions were made in each case. A final number of 87 articles met all the inclusion criteria and were found suitable to be reviewed (Figure 1 ). Data extraction was performed and the key findings of all previous studies were presented as tables and illustrations (Table 1 and Figure 1 ). The results were organized in separate sections including in vitro and in vivo studies and drug sensitizing effects. Finally, the overall results were subjected to discussion in which the possible mechanisms of selective action of EPA and DHA on neoplastic cells and the feasibility of their clinical usage were explained and a conclusion was finally drawn.

IN VITRO STUDIES ON EPA AND DHA

Anti-proliferative and differentiation inducing effects

Omega-3 FAs have been shown to have strong anti-proliferative and differentiation promoting effects [ 21 , 22 ]. A natural lipid preparation rich in EPA and DHA (45.3% of the whole preparation) showed prominent anti-proliferative effects in promyelocytic leukemia (HL-60) cells. Separate treatment with pure EPA and DHA also inhibited the proliferation of these cells by 11.3 and 19.3%, respectively. However, these effects were more pronounced when they were used in combination with other fatty acids such as conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) [ 23 ]. DHA (10-50 μM), in combination with As 2 O 3 , induced cell death in HTLV-1-immortalized cells via decreasing mitochondrial membrane potential in a caspase- and PARP-1-independent pathway. This suggested a necrotic cytotoxic effect rather than apoptotic cell death [ 24 ]. A study on HL-60 leukemia cells showed that EPA (10 μM) is a potent inducer of ROS production and myeloid leukemia cell differentiation which gives it the ability to potentiate the differentiation-inducing effect of 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) [ 25 ]. The proliferation of monocytic U937-1 cells has been also shown to be inhibited by EPA at a minimal concentration of 60 μM which was accompanied with apoptosis induction at higher concentrations of 120 and 240 μM. However, in contrast to the results of a majority of studies, these effects were not attributable to the well-established peroxidation mechanisms since the addition of antioxidant agents did not interfere with the anti-proliferative effects of EPA [ 26 ]. A previous study on the mouse myeloma cells (SP 2/0) had also shown that EPA (5-40 μg/mL) and to a lower extent DHA exert anti-proliferative effects on this cell type which could be roughly imputed to their lipid peroxidation effects. Complete blockade of this effect by superoxide dismutase (SOD) and cyclooxygenase and lipooxygenase inhibitors revealed a role for superoxides as well as prostaglandins and leukotrienes [ 27 ]. A study on HL-60 leukemia cells evaluated the effects of EPA in combination with linolenic acid (GLA) on pulmonary inflammation. EPA (50-100 μM) noticeably increased apoptosis and reduced cell viability in HL-60 cells. This was associated with a significantly enhanced rate of necrosis [ 28 ]. DHA (10 μM) also induced apoptosis and reduced cell viability in the primary cells of CLL patients in a concentration- and time-dependent manner [ 29 ]. Conversely, in another study, DHA (10 μM) prevented sphingosine-induced apoptosis in HL-60 cells after 24 h [ 30 ]. Following EPA (30 μM) treatment, the cells showed increased caspase 3 and 9 activity without affecting caspase 8 activity or cell cycle progression [ 31 ]. Similar results have shown that EPA induces apoptosis via increased release of cytochrome c, activation of caspase-3 and enhanced mitochondrial-derived hydroperoxide (mitochondrial oxidative stress) [ 32 ]. To further investigate the mechanisms of EPA-induced apoptosis in mitochondria, RBL2H3 cells were treated with 50 μM EPA for 4 h. This significantly increased mitochondrial oxidative stress and calcium levels. The results showed that EPA can induce apoptosis via calcium-dependent hydroperoxide accumulation in the mitochondria [ 33 ].

Significant caspase-3 dependent apoptosis was observed following DHA (50 μM) treatment in HL-60 cells. The use of cyclosporine-A as a mitochondrial permeability transition pore (MPTP) inhibitor did not inhibit caspase-3 activation or Bax translocation indicating that DHA may induce apoptosis through a Bax-independent pathway [ 34 ]. Treatment of HL-60 cells with 50 μM DHA resulted in a concentration-dependent increase in cell differentiation and inhibited the cell growth. It also enhanced the nitro blue tetrazolium chloride (NBT) reducing activity as an indicator of cell differentiation. In addition, DHA (50 μM) noticeably increased c-jun mRNA and protein levels whilst those of c-myc were markedly reduced [ 35 ].

Apoptotic effects

In vitro treatment of HL-60 and K-562 cells with EPA delayed cell cycle progression at G0/G1 but shortened the G2/M duration. It also induced significant necrosis in both cell lines by 19.6 and 4.4%, respectively. Moreover, apoptosis was induced by EPA to a much greater extent in HL-60 cells which was mediated mainly by downregulating the expression of the bcl-2 signalling molecule, a major regulator of apoptosis [ 36 , 37 ]). Similar results were reported in another study indicating that EPA (40, 60, and 120 μM) can induce apoptosis in HL-60 cells but not in K562 cells independent of any of its effects on DNA fragmentation [ 38 ]. In addition, the apoptotic and necrotic effects of EPA have also been reported to be independent of both cyclooxygenase and lipooxygenase pathways and of lipid peroxidation [ 39 ]. Although the various EPA-sensitive and EPA-resistant leukemic cell lines express different levels of pro-apoptotic and anti-apoptotic factors such as c-myc and Bcl-2, the differences in the expression of these factors do not account for its differential effects on apoptosis of different cells [ 40 ].

DHA from sources other than fish oil such as Crypthecodinium cohnii algae also have notable cell growth inhibiting properties in HL-60 cells. Algae-derived DHA halted HL-60 cell proliferation by delaying the cells in G0/G1 in a concentration-dependent fashion (IC 50 of 74 μM) and significant apoptosis was observed at 24, 48, and 72 h. This was associated with the inactivation of retinoblastoma (Rb) protein and up-regulating the expression of E2F-6, a suppressor of transcription, and the pro-apoptotic molecule Bax [ 41 ]. High concentrations of DHA (60 and 90 μM) induced Jurkat cell apoptosis via caspase 3 activation, PARP degradation and DNA fragmentation.

Tautomycin and cypermethrin, two phosphatase inhibitors which inhibit protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) and protein phosphatase 2B (PP2B) respectively, ablated the apoptotic effect of DHA implying a role for PP1 and PP2B in the induction of apoptosis [ 42 ]. The phosphatase-dependent cytotoxic effect of DHA (15 μM) has been also previously revealed in another study in which phosphatidic acid (PA), a specific PP1 inhibitor, reversed the DHA-induced apoptosis in Jurkat cells [ 7 ]. Repeated exposure to low concentrations of DHA (10 μM) rapidly decreased Jurkat cell viability whilst a single exposure at the same concentration only induced cell cycle arrest. Overall, DHA-induced Jurkat cell apoptosis and loss of proliferation are believed to result from increased ceramide production which leads to the decreased cyclin-dependent kinase 2 (cdk2) activity as well as increased PP1 and PP2A activities. This leads to the inhibition of Rb phosphorylation and subsequent cell growth arrest [ 43 ]. An overview of the effects of EPA and DHA in hematological cancers is illustrated in Figure 2 .

Integration of EPA and/or DHA into the plasma membrane of cells decreases the proportion of arachidonic acid (AA) and consequently the production of AA-derived inflammatory mediators. In turn, the production of the less inflammatory EPA- and DHA-derived eicosanoids is increased. On the other hand, the ability of these two FAs to decrease the activity of regulatory T cells, major regulators of immune responses to leukemic cells, skews the immune response to act against hematological malignancies [ 11 ]. DHA and EPA can also prevent allergic diseases by inhibiting Th2-driven immune responses. The results showed that they mitigate IL-4 and IL-13 production, decrease expression of c-Fos and NF-AT whilst inhibiting phosphorylation of the extracellular signal-related kinase [ 44 ].

Epigenetic alterations

DHA and EPA might also exert their biological effects via induction of epigenetic changes. These FAs are able to target the aberrant DNA methylation which is present in all types of cancers either across the whole DNA or at specific sites such as the non-coding regions of tumor suppressor genes [ 45 ]. Alteration of the extent of CpG methylation by PUFAs results in changes in the pattern of gene silencing and consequently the fate of target cell transcription. For example, EPA (100 μM) demethylates specific CpG sites within the promoter region of the tumor suppressor gene CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein (C/EBP)δ in the U937 promonocytic cell line leading to its enhanced expression. In addition, EPA and to lower extents other PUFAs such as DHA, increased the expression of transcription factors including C/EBPβ and C/EBPδ, PU.1 and c-Jun via similar epigenetic mechanisms [ 46 ]. Treatment of U937 cells with EPA (100 μM) can also activate the Ras/ERK/C/EBPβ pathway via demethylating a CpG island within an intron of the H-Ras gene which drives monocyte differentiation [ 18 ]. Overall, the anti-proliferative and differentiation promoting effects of EPA on monocytic leukemia cells is driven, at least in part, by demethylation of promoter regions of genes involved in tumor suppression and differentiation. These effects are not restricted to EPA as they also occur, albeit at lower potencies, with other PUFAs. EPA-induced down-regulation of serglycin mRNA is involved in HL-60 cell differentiation in a similar manner to that evoked by retinoic acid (RA). Nonetheless, this effect was not via actions on c-myc expression, a known mechanism of RA-induced differentiation [ 39 ]. In contrast, EPA treatment of U-937-1 cells does not increase the expression of the monocytic lineage differentiation markers, CD36 and CD68, at least at the concentrations tested [ 26 ].

Effects on calcium homeostasis

DHA (10 and 20 μM) activates the PLC/IP 3 pathway and thereby increases intracellular calcium (CA ++ ) concentration and this has been implicated in DHA-induced apoptosis in U937 cells [ 47 ]. Ca ++ mobilization by DHA also decreases intracellular pH which might play a role in DHA-mediated apoptosis and anti-proliferative effects in human T cells [ 48 ]. Econazole is an antifungal agent which mobilizes the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) Ca ++ storage and blocks extracellular Ca ++ influx leading to a constant depletion of ER Ca ++ storage [ 49 , 50 ]. In HL-60 cells, EPA induces apoptosis via the induction of ER stress causing the unfolded protein response (UPR) pathway to be activated. EPA triggers ER-stress via the depletion of intracellular Ca ++ levels with a mechanism similar to that of econazole. In a similar fashion, EPA not only blocks trans-membrane Ca ++ influx via store-operated Ca ++ channels (SOC), but also it increases Ca ++ release from the ER in an IP 3 -independent pathway. This will trigger the UPR response and finally lead to apoptosis [ 9 ].

IN VIVO STUDIES

Dietary supplementation of 1.5% DHA (as an adjuvant to the nucleoside chemotherapy drug arabinosylcytosine, AraC) into a low-fat diet resulted in an average daily intake of 1.8 g DHA/kg BW /day and significantly increased the survival time of BDF1 mice bearing L1210 cell-induced leukemia from 12 days post leukemic cell injection to 33.3 days. In contrast, animals receiving higher amounts of DHA (4.5 g DHA/kg BW /day) survived for 26.5 days after leukemia implementation [ 51 ]. This indicates that there is an optimal dose of DHA required to enhance survival time. Dietary EPA supplementation in experimental CML and AML C57/BL6 mouse models has also been reported to target leukemia stem cells (LSCs) and decrease leukemia burden. Cyclooxygenase is necessary for the conversion of EPA into its metabolite Δ12-PGJ3. The inhibition of cyclooxygenase and hematopoietic prostaglandin D synthase (H-PGDS), by indomethacin and HQL-79 respectively, blocked the ability of EPA to attenuate cancer in CML-bearing animals. This suggests that Δ12-PGJ3 is the active agent for the EPA-induced effects which was confirmed with the re-establishment of the beneficial effects of EPA in indomethacin-treated mice following the administration of Δ12-PGJ3 [ 52 ].

Effects of EPA/DHA on lymphoma cells

In a study by Speizer et al. which investigated the effects of fish oil FAs including EPA and DHA on the activity of protein kinases from lymphoma cells and bovine brain it was revealed that these FAs can differentially alter the activities of protein kinase C and cAMP-dependent protein kinase and thus are able to act as intracellular second messengers [ 53 ]. It is interesting to note that although EPA and DHA have been shown to enhance the number and function of B lymphocytes under normal conditions via altering the membrane composition of the cells, they have no such effects on Raji, Ramos, and RPMI lymphoma cell lines at least at the tested concentration (25 μM) and thus treatment with these two FAs does not promote cancer cell growth [ 54 ]. The suggested mechanism for this difference is the elongation of membrane-incorporated EPA and DHA into docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) which has been recently shown to substantially affect membrane properties [ 54 ]. EPA and more potently DHA were shown to readily incorporate into the plasma membrane of L5178Y lymphoma cells when added to the culture medium at concentrations higher than 10 μM. EPA and DHA also reduced the proliferation of the cells and increased the cytotoxicity of the chemotherapeutic agents including doxorubicin, dexamethasone, and mitomycin-C [ 55 ]. One study showed the necrosis and apoptosis inducing effects of EPA in two lymphoma cell lines, Raji and Ramos. The necrotic effect of EPA was reversed using different antioxidants without any effect on its apoptotic effects indicating a role for oxidative stress as a means of necrosis induction by EPA. In addition, protein synthesis was suggested to play roles in the EPA-induced apoptosis as this was prevented by the protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide [ 56 ]. Another study by the same group investigated the effects of EPA on the activities of different caspases and showed that the EPA-induced apoptosis in Ramos cells is mediated by a direct effect of EPA on the intrinsic pathway of apoptosis rather than interfering with cell cycle progression [ 57 ]. The use of triacsin C, an Acyl-CoA synthetase (ACS) inhibitor, has revealed the important role of ACS in the EPA-induced apoptosis. Inhibition of ACS by triacsin C caused a 90% decrease in the induction of apoptosis by EPA in the Ramos cell line. This can also, at least partly, explain the resistance of the U-698 cell line against EPA, since the U-698 cells express lower levels of ACS, compared to the EPA-sensitive cell lines such as Ramos [ 58 ].

A fish oil-supplemented diet has been shown to improve the metabolic parameters of dogs with lymphoblastic lymphoma. Such a diet resulted in increased plasma levels of DHA and EPA which was associated with lower levels of plasma lactic acid. This, in turn, increased the disease-free interval and survival time after doxorubicin chemotherapy [ 59 ]. The increased survival time and quality of life may not only have arisen from the direct anti-tumor activity of EPA and DHA, but also may be due to the cachexia-inhibiting effect of EPA, which was mediated by inhibition of cAMP in cancer cells both in mouse models and humans [ 60 ]. EPA, a key regulator of cyclin D1 synthesis, has been suggested to be of therapeutic potential in patients with mantle cell lymphoma since the main culprit in the pathogenesis and refractoriness of this type of malignancy is the elevated levels of cyclin D1 which is crucial in cell cycle progression from G1 to the S phase [ 61 , 62 ]. This notion is further supported by the results of a study by Cvetkovic et al. which showed lower levels of PUFAs in the serum of patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in comparison with healthy controls and the association of lower amounts of PUFAs in the serum of these patients with the clinical severity and aggressiveness of the disease [ 63 ]. In vitro treatment of YAC-1 lymphoma cell line with EPA has been shown to induce apoptosis in these cells via a caspase-3 independent pathway. Increases in the cellular ROS production as well as the accumulation of lipid droplets containing triacylglycerol in the cells were among the important changes observed in the YAC-1 cells treated with EPA [ 64 ].

DRUG SENSITIZING EFFECTS

Co-treatment of HL-60 leukemic cells with lipid preparations containing high concentrations of DHA and EPA did not improve the anti-proliferative effect of doxorubicin [ 23 ]. However, combining As 2 O 3 and IFN-γ, a common chemotherapy for adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL) patients, with emodin (a natural ROS-producing agent) and 10 μM DHA resulted in a 100-fold reduction in the dose of As 2 O 3 required for the effective treatment of ATL. Emodin and DHA have been suggested to act via a synergistic action with A 2 O 3 rather than having a direct anti-tumor action since treatment with emodin+DHA together did not induce significant effects on ATL. Potentiation of the cytostatic property of As 2 O 3 by DHA was mainly attributed to its ROS generating abilities and down regulation of AP-1 and AKT expression which are both involved in cell survival [ 24 ]. As 2 O 3 , as an ROS-generating anti-cancer chemical, enhances ROS within malignant cells which, in turn, affects the co-administered DHA to form fatty acid hydroxides and hydroperoxides [ 65 ]. This potentiates the oxidizing actions of As 2 O 3 which can be exploited to combat the malignant cells. In support of this, incorporation of 1 and 25 μM DHA into an As 2 O 3 -based regimen not only extended its apoptotic effect to the As 2 O 3 -resistant HL-60 cell line but also significantly decreased the viability of leukemic cells when compared to DHA treatment alone [ 14 ].

On the other side, there are various defence mechanisms by which cells protect themselves against oxidative stress. Glutathione peroxidase 4 (Gp-x4) is the most important and the only enzyme which neutralizes lipid hydroperoxide, an important DHA oxidation end product, which mediates the cytotoxic effects of DHA [ 66 ]. In vivo treatment of BDF1 leukemic mice with oral DHA increased the cytostatic effect of AraC but also abolished drug toxicity-induced death. Interestingly, this effect was reversed when the intake of DHA was increased from 1.8 g to 4.5 g/kg BW /day [ 51 ].

The biological effect of each member of PUFAs is specific to that member and differences between members of the same family of fatty acids have been reported. In this regard, treatment of HL-60 cells, bearing a Bcr-Abl translocation, with different concentrations of DHA (25, 50 and 100 μM) resulted in higher sensitivity of the cells to the tyrosine kinase inhibitor imatinib mesylate, increased percentage of apoptotic cells and reduced viability. In contrast, EPA, a member of the same FA family, had no effect at any of the concentrations tested. Loss of membrane integrity as well as increased DNA fragmentation was suggested to be involved in these effects [ 65 ]. Pre-incubation of the lymphoma cell line L5178Y with 10 μM and higher concentrations of DHA and EPA has been also shown to significantly increase the response of the cells to doxorubicin. The degree of unsaturation and chain length positively correlated with higher cytotoxic potencies of the tested FAs [ 55 ]. Cvetkovic et al. showed that the plasma phospholipid profile of patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma influences response to chemotherapy in a manner that the plasma contents of PUFAs including EPA and DHA were lower in the patients who could not complete the chemotherapy course and in those with progressive disease compared to the patients in which the treatment period was successfully completed and remission was achieved [ 67 ].

Clioquinol, a recently used microbial agent in anti-tumor therapy, enhanced the apoptotic effect of DHA (100 μM) in a human B-cell lymphoblastoid line (Raji) after a 72 h combination therapy. Downregulation of NF-kB as well as reducing the levels of cell survival signalling molecules including Akt and Bcl-2 are involved in this synergistic effect. Although clinoquinol treatment alone did not induce lipid peroxidation, pre-treatment with vitamin E blocked the synergistic effect of DHA and clioquinol, indicating that lipid peroxidation might play a key role in DHA-induced toxicity in Raji cells [ 68 ].

Pre-treatment of B-CLL and B-PLL-derived cell lines (EHEB, MEC-2 and JVM-2, respectively) with different concentrations of EPA and DHA decreased the tolerance of the cells against doxorubicine-, fludarabine- and vincristine-induced toxicities resulting in decreased cell viability. The number of apoptotic cells also increased indicating that pre-treatment of the cells with DHA and EPA potentiated the cytotoxicity of the drugs via increasing lipid peroxidation, induction of ROS and inhibition of cell cycle at G0/M. Preventing oxidative stress using vitamin E did not reverse the drug-sensitizing effects suggesting the involvement of other unknown mechanisms [ 68 ]. DHA is also able to enhance doxorubicin sensitivity in P388 cells by elevating doxorubicin accumulation in cancer cells leading to increased cytotoxicity. A role for ROS was invoked as 50 μM DHA enhanced superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities [ 69 ]. The drug-sensitizing effects of EPA and DHA have been summarized in Table 2 .

DISCUSSION

Mechanisms of selective action

Although structurally similar, EPA and DHA can differentially affect the biological activity of cells, at least partly, due to their different magnitude of effects on AA-dependent processes within cells, as evidenced in U937 lymphoma cell line [ 70 ]. The long-term consumption of EPA has been shown to dramatically increase the EPA content of plasma, platelets and red blood cells with no effect on DHA content. This may suggests that extremely complex and distinct pathways may exist that regulate the metabolism of these two FAs [ 61 ]. Nonetheless, both EPA and DHA have selective actions on malignant cells with minor, if any, effects on normal cells [ 13 , 14 , 20 , 24 ]. Therefore, the mechanisms responsible for these selective actions will not only help us design more effective anti-cancer treatments using omega-3 FAs but may also reveal new targets for chemotherapeutic agents. In contrast, cancer cell lines show variable levels of sensitivity to omega-3 FAs and some of them can tolerate treatment with these agents and are therefore resistant to them [ 40 ]. However, DHA and EPA can enhance the actions of other drugs to modulate the dysregulated activity/expression of oncogenic targets without having any significant effect on the target cells per se . An example of this is the ability of DHA and emodin to down-regulate the enhanced expression of AP-1 and increased AKT activity in HTLV-1 infected T cells [ 24 ]. Furthermore, since FAs synergize the oxidative effects of ROS-producing agents [ 13 , 14 ] this may also elicit a potent anti-tumor action. However, the effectiveness of a single administration of DHA/EPA in the absence of ROS-producing agents indicates that this cannot be the only mechanism involved.

One of the mechanisms proposed for the anti-cancer effects of EPA and DHA is the induction of lipid peroxidation. The main intracellular mechanism which protects cells against lipid peroxidation is the enzyme GP-x4 and the variable sensitivity of different cell lines to DHA and EPA might reflect the differential expression of GP-x4 in various healthy and neoplastic cells. This will impact on the ability to protect against peroxidation-induced cellular damage [ 66 ].

The ability of different cells to metabolize EPA into its more effective metabolite Δ12-PGJ3 might also determine cell sensitivity to this FA [ 52 ]. Elevated expression of 3 acyl-CoA synthetases (ACSs) is observed in EPA-sensitive cell lines such as Ramos and Raji, giving these cells a greater ability to covert EPA into its active form EPA-CoA. In addition, some EPA-resistant cells such as U-698 have a limited ability to uptake PUFAs leading to reduced accumulation of cytosolic lipid droplets, a characteristic of responsive cells [ 26 , 71 ]. The differential expression of apoptosis regulating genes such as c-myc which drives the cell towards a programmed cell death response in those which express higher levels of c-myc (Ramos cell line) or towards necrotic cell death in those with less c-myc may explain why some neoplastic cells treated with EPA/DHA undergo apoptosis and others undergo necrosis [ 40 ].

DHA alters the composition of membrane micro-domains replacing other fatty acids and reducing cholesterol and monoenoic FAs. This has been shown by evaluating the FA content of exfoliated microvesicles derived from DHA-treated leukemic cell lines. Thereby, DHA can induce a unique arrangement of lipid microdomains which might consequently determine the fate of membrane-bound signalling compartments to activate specific downstream pathways giving rise to different vital changes inside the cell [ 72 ].

Feasibility of clinical usage

The significant anti-cancer properties of omega-3 FAs especially EPA and DHA as well as their selective action and high safety profile [ 73 , 74 ] suggest a promising clinical future. To date, studies have investigated the correlation between fish oil, as a rich source of omega-3 FAs, and other seafood consumption with a reduced risk of cancers. However, few clinical trials have been conducted to specifically study the effects of EPA and DHA on hematological malignancies. A clinical trial on 12 ALL and 6 AML patients investigated the effects of EPA as part of an energy and protein dense supplement. At the end of the trial, alleviation of cancer-induced weight loss and improvement of the overall conditions of adult and pediatric patients was observed. Decrease in the levels of circulating cytokines and acute phase proteins were attributed to the desirable effects of EPA [ 75 ].

The results of phase I and II clinical trials in patients with solid tumors have demonstrated that omega-3 FAs are safe and show promising results especially in patients in which the blood concentration of these FAs was raised significantly after treatment [ 76 ]. The recommended dose of EPA to improve cancer-induced cachexia is 1.5-2 g/day and side effects at this dose are minimal [ 77 ]; however, the benefit of increasing doses is unclear [ 78 , 79 ]. Although criticized by the fact that PUFAs increase oxidative stress and the production of lipid peroxyl radicals within cells predisposing them to oxidative damage [ 80 ], the consumption of PUFAs has been shown to be clinically safe. In one study, the safety of EPA oil was compared in vivo with the conventional commercial fish oil and the in vitro toxicity of EPA was assessed as well using the Ames mutagenicity test. The results showed that exposure of rats for 28 days at doses up to 2820 mg/kg/day does not cause any adverse effects on either of clinical, nutritional or anatomic pathology parameters of the animals. Moreover, EPA did not induce any mutations in the Ames test [ 81 ]. DHA is well-tolerated by humans even at doses up to 18 g/day [ 78 ]. In a study by Horrobin et al., the long-term intake of 12 g/day of ethyl-eicosapentaenoate as a dietary source of purified EPA by a patient suffering mantle cell lymphoma which resulted in a cumulative dose of 5 kg EPA within a 16-month period was shown to be safe without any side effects [ 61 ]. In vitro studies investigating the effects of DHA on different cancer cell lines have indicated IC 50 concentrationsof 80-90 mM [ 66 ] which is within the plasma and tissue concentration ranges of EPA/DHA and can be achieved clinically. Enhanced efficacy may be obtained using albumin-bound EPA or DHA to negate the effects of protein binding [ 40 ]. Moreover, it has been shown that dietary EPA, when it is metabolized, can produce sufficient amounts of Δ 12 -PGJ 3 to induce apoptosis in leukemia cells [ 82 ]. A very recent study which investigated the effects of dietary EPA and DHA supplementation on the nutritional inflammatory status and long-term survival of patients with acute and chronic leukemia and lymphomas (Hodgkin and Non-Hodgkin lymphomas) receiving chemotherapy revealed that the consumption 2 g/day of fish oil (containing EPA and DHA) for 9 months resulted in greater reduction in the C-reactive protein (CRP) and CRP/albumin ratio in the patients receiving the supplement and chemotherapy in comparison to those receiving chemotherapy only. This significantly prolonged the overall survival time of the patients [ 83 ]. The results of these studies all together may give rise to the notion that supplementation with PUFAs may not only cause direct anti-tumor effects in the context of haematological malignancies, but also it may improve the response to treatment and the side effects of conventional chemotherapy via attenuating the inflammatory status of the patients, thus playing a dual role in improving the treatment outcome of patients with haematological malignancies.

CONCLUSION

Based on the previous findings, conducting studies comparing different cell lines in terms of resistance and sensitivity to EPA/DHA is recommended. This can help pointing out the differences which might serve as the target for the action of EPA/DHA. Moreover, considering the diverse effects observed with high and low concentrations of these two FAs, determining the optimal dietary/non-dietary supplementation of PUFAs into chemotherapy regimens is also essential. Delineating the precise mechanism of action of EPA and DHA in inducing selective cancer cell death; epigenetic effects on tumor suppressor genes, enhancing ROS production or effects on lipid peroxidation will enable better targeting of cancers using these drugs. While most in vitro studies conducted to date focus on the direct effects of PUFAs, in vivo studies utilising the synergistic actions of EPA and DHA may shed light on the indirect mechanisms of these agents such as on immune cell and cytokine regulation which might inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Rapid screening of primary cancer cells exposed to DHA and EPA ex vivo may also define the correct patient and combination of drugs required for optimal therapy enhancing our options for personalised or precision medicine.

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

REFERENCES

1 Calder PC Mechanisms of action of (n-3) fatty acids The Journal of nutrition 2012 142 592S 9S 22279140 10.3945/jn.111.155259

2 Acids UF Nutritional and physiological significance The Report of the British Nutrition Foundation’s Task Force Chapman and Hall London 1992

3 Geleijnse JM Giltay EJ Grobbee DE Donders AR Kok FJ Blood pressure response to fish oil supplementation: metaregression analysis of randomized trials LWW 2002 10.1097/00004872-200208000-00010 12172309

4 von Schacky C Omega-3 fatty acids: antiarrhythmic, proarrhythmic or both? current opinion in Clinical Nutrition & Metabolic Care 2008 11 94 9 10.1097/MCO.0b013e3282f44bdf 18301082

5 Demel R Van Kessel WG van Deenen L The properties of polyunsaturated lecithins in monolayers and liposomes and the interactions of these lecithins with cholesterol Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA)-Biomembranes 1972 266 26 40 5064891 10.1016/0005-2736(72)90116-2

6 Tomobe YI Morizawa K Tsuchida M Hibino H Nakano Y Tanaka Y Dietary docosahexaenoic acid suppresses inflammation and immunoresponses in contact hypersensitivity reaction in mice Lipids 2000 35 61 9 10695925 10.1007/s11745-000-0495-0

7 Siddiqui RA Jenski LJ Wiesehan JD Hunter MV Kovacs RJ Stillwell W Prevention of docosahexaenoic acid-induced cytotoxicity by phosphatidic acid in jurkat leukemic cells: the role of protein phosphatase-1 Biochimica et Biophysica Acta - Molecular Cell Research 2001 1541 188 200 10.1016/s0167-4889(01)00143-4 11755213

8 Moyad MA An introduction to dietary/supplemental omega-3 fatty acids for general health and prevention: Part II Urologic Oncology: Seminars and Original Investigations 2005 23 36 48 15885582 10.1016/j.urolonc.2005.03.001

9 Slagsvold JE Pettersen CHH Follestad T Krokan HE Schonberg SA The antiproliferative effect of EPA in HL60 cells is mediated by alterations in calcium homeostasis Lipids 2009 44 103 13 19020915 10.1007/s11745-008-3263-5

10 Song EA Kim H Docosahexaenoic acid induces oxidative DNA damage and apoptosis, and enhances the chemosensitivity of cancer cells International Journal of Molecular Sciences 2016 17 1257 10.3390/ijms17081257 PMC5000655 27527148

11 Betiati DSB de Oliveira PFD Camargo CQ Nunes EA de Moraes EBS Trindade EB effects of omega-3 fatty acids on regulatory t cells in hematologic neoplasms Revista Brasileira de Hematologia e Hemoterapia 2013 35 119 25 23741190 10.5581/1516-8484.20130033 PMC3672122

12 Asghari MH Moloudizargari M Ghobadi E Fallah M Abdollahi M Melatonin as a multifunctional anti-cancer molecule: Implications in gastric cancer Life Sciences 2017 185 38 45 28739305 10.1016/j.lfs.2017.07.020

13 Baumgartner M Sturlan S Roth E Wessner B Bachleitner-Hofmann T Enhancement of arsenic trioxide-mediated apoptosis using docosahexaenoic acid in arsenic trioxide-resistant solid tumor cells International Journal of Cancer 2004 112 707 12 15382055 10.1002/ijc.20462

14 Sturlan S Baumgartner M Roth E Bachleitner-Hofmann T Docosahexaenoic acid enhances arsenic trioxide-mediated apoptosis in arsenic trioxide-resistant HL-60 cells Blood 2003 101 4990 7 12609832 10.1182/blood-2002-08-2391

15 Fan YY McMurray DN Ly LH Chapkin RS Dietary (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids remodel mouse T-cell lipid rafts The Journal of nutrition 2003 133 1913 20 12771339 10.1093/jn/133.6.1913

16 Stulnig TM Huber J Leitinger N Imre EM Angelisová P Nowotny P Waldhausl W Polyunsaturated eicosapentaenoic acid displaces proteins from membrane rafts by altering raft lipid composition Journal of Biological Chemistry 2001 276 37335 40 11489905 10.1074/jbc.M106193200

17 Arita K Kobuchi H Utsumi T Takehara Y Akiyama J Horton AA Utsumi K Mechanism of apoptosis in HL-60 cells induced by n-3 and n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids Biochemical Pharmacology 2001 62 821 8 11543718 10.1016/s0006-2952(01)00723-7

18 Ceccarelli V Nocentini G Billi M Racanicchi S Riccardi C Roberti R Grignani F Binaglia L Vecchini A Eicosapentaenoic acid activates RAS/ERK/C/EBPβ pathway through H-ras intron 1 CpG island demethylation in U937 leukemia cells PLoS ONE 2014 9 10.1371/journal.pone.0085025 PMC3890293 24454781

19 Siddiqui RA Harvey KA Xu Z Bammerlin EM Walker C Altenburg JD Docosahexaenoic acid: a natural powerful adjuvant that improves efficacy for anticancer treatment with no adverse effects BioFactors 2011 37 399 412 22038684 10.1002/biof.181

20 Abdi J Garssen J Faber J Redegeld FA Omega-3 fatty acids, EPA and DHA induce apoptosis and enhance drug sensitivity in multiple myeloma cells but not in normal peripheral mononuclear cells Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry 2014 25 1254 62 25277647 10.1016/j.jnutbio.2014.06.013

21 Khaddaj-Mallat R Morin C Rousseau É Novel n-3 PUFA monoacylglycerides of pharmacological and medicinal interest: anti-inflammatory and anti-proliferative effects European Journal of Pharmacology 2016 792 70 7 27818127 10.1016/j.ejphar.2016.10.038

22 Rudolph I Kelley D Klasing K Erickson KL Regulation of cellular differentiation and apoptosis by fatty acids and their metabolites Nutrition Research 2001 21 381 93 12749359 10.1016/s0271-5317(00)00285-2

23 Bodkowski R Patkowska-Sokola B Filip-Psurska B Kempinska K Wietrzyk JA Czyz K Walisiewicz-Niedbalska W Usydus Z Evaluation of the anti-proliferative activity of natural lipid preparations against tumor cell lines Journal of East Asian Studies 2014 13 257 66

24 Brown M Bellon M Nicot C Emodin and DHA potently increase arsenic trioxide interferon-alpha-induced cell death of HTLV-I-transformed cells by generation of reactive oxygen species and inhibition of Akt and AP-1 Blood 2007 109 1653 9 17077332 10.1182/blood-2006-04-015537 PMC1794054

25 Chien CC Wu MS Shen SC Yang LY Wu WS Chen YC Arachidonic acid enhances TPA-induced differentiation in human leukemia HL-60 cells via reactive oxygen species-dependent ERK activation Prostaglandins Leukotrienes and Essential Fatty Acids 2013 88 289 98 10.1016/j.plefa.2013.01.004 23490067

26 Finstad HS Drevon CA Kulseth MA Synstad AV Knudsen E Kolset SO Cell proliferation, apoptosis and accumulation of lipid droplets in U937-1 cells incubated with eicosapentaenoic acid Biochemical Journal 1998 336 451 9 9820824 10.1042/bj3360451 PMC1219891

27 Sravan Kumar G Das UN Cytotoxic action of alpha-linolenic and eicosapentaenoic acids on myeloma cells in vitro Prostaglandins, leukotrienes, and essential fatty acids 1997 56 285 93 10.1016/s0952-3278(97)90572-x 9150374

28 Gillis RC Daley BJ Enderson BL Karlstad MD Eicosapentaenoic acid and γ-linolenic acid induce apoptosis in HL-60 cells Journal of Surgical Research 2002 107 145 53 12384078 10.1006/jsre.2002.6496

29 Guièze R Gyan E Tournilhac O Halty C Veyrat-Masson R Akil S Berger M Hérault O Callanan M Bay JO Docosahexaenoic acid induces apoptosis in primary chronic lymphocytic leukemia cells Hematology Reports 2015 7 91 2 10.4081/hr.2015.6043 PMC4691679 26734128

30 Kishida E Yano M Kasahara M Masuzawa Y Distinctive inhibitory activity of docosahexaenoic acid against sphingosine-induced apoptosis Biochimica Et Biophysica Acta-Lipids and Lipid Metabolism 1998 1391 401 8 10.1016/s0005-2760(98)00015-0 9555103

31 Heimli H Giske C Naderi S Drevon CA Hollung K Eicosapentaenoic acid promotes apoptosis in Ramos cells via activation of caspase-3 and -9 Lipids 2002 37 797 802 12371751 10.1007/s11745-002-0963-6

32 Koumura T Nakamura C Nakagawa Y Involvement of hydroperoxide in mitochondria in the induction of apoptosis by the eicosapentaenoic acid Free Radical Research 2005 39 225 35 15788227 10.1080/10715760500043587

33 Koumura T Nakamura C Nakagawa Y Role of calcium-induced mitochondrial hydroperoxide in induction of apoptosis of RBL2H3 cells with eicosapentaenoic acid treatment Free Radical Research 2005 39 1083 9 16298733 10.1080/10715760500264654

34 Miura Y Takahara K Murata Y Utsumi K Tada M Takahata K Docosahexaenoic acid induces apoptosis via the bax-independent pathway in HL-60 cells Bioscience, Biotechnology and Biochemistry 2004 68 2415 7 10.1271/bbb.68.2415 15564688

35 Ishigamori H Hosokawa M Kohno H Tanaka T Miyashita K Takahashi K Docosahexaenoic acid-containing phosphatidylethanolamine enhances HL-60 cell differentiation by regulation of c-jun and c-myc expression Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry 2005 275 127 33 16335792 10.1007/s11010-005-1090-z

36 Chiu LC Wan JM Induction of apoptosis in HL-60 cells by eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) is associated with downregulation of bcl-2 expression Cancer Lett 1999 145 17 27 10530765 10.1016/s0304-3835(99)00224-4

37 Moloudizargari M Asghari MH Ghobadi E Fallah M Rasouli S Abdollahi M Autophagy, its mechanisms and regulation: implications in neurodegenerative diseases Ageing Res Rev 2017 40 64 74 28923312 10.1016/j.arr.2017.09.005

38 Chiu LC Wan JM Ooi VE Induction of apoptosis by dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids in human leukemic cells is not associated with DNA fragmentation International journal of oncology 2000 17 789 96 10995893 10.3892/ijo.17.4.789

39 Finstad HS Kolset SO Holme JA Wiger R Östlund Farrants AK Blomhoff R Drevon CA Effect of n-3 and n-6 fatty acids on proliferation and differentiation of promyelocytic leukemic HL-60 cells Blood 1994 84 3799 809 7949136

40 Finstad HS Wik Myhrstad MC Heimli H Lomo J Kiil Blomhoff H Kolset SO Drevon CA Multiplication and death-type of leukemia cell lines exposed to very long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids Leukemia 1998 12 921 9 9639421 10.1038/sj.leu.2401030

41 Chiu LC Wong EY Ooi VE Docosahexaenoic acid modulates different genes in cell cycle and apoptosis to control growth of human leukemia HL-60 cells International journal of oncology 2004 25 737 44 15289877

42 Siddiqui RA Jenski LJ Neff K Harvey K Kovacs RJ Stillwell W Docosahexaenoic acid induces apoptosis in jurkat cells by a protein phosphatase-mediated process Biochimica et Biophysica Acta - Molecular Cell Research 2001 1499 265 75 10.1016/s0167-4889(00)00128-2 11341974

43 Siddiqui RA Jenski LJ Harvey KA Wiesehan JD Stillwell W Zaloga GP Cell-cycle arrest in jurkat leukaemic cells: a possible role for docosahexaenoic acid Biochemical Journal 2003 371 621 9 12492401 10.1042/BJ20021667 PMC1223278

44 Jin M Park S Park BK Choi JJ Yoon SJ Yang M Pyo MY Eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid suppress Th2 cytokine expression in RBL-2H3 basophilic leukemia cells Journal of Medicinal Food 2014 17 198 205 24460246 10.1089/jmf.2013.2935

45 Jones PA Baylin SB The epigenomics of cancer Cell 2007 128 683 92 17320506 10.1016/j.cell.2007.01.029 PMC3894624

46 Ceccarelli V Racanicchi S Martelli MP Nocentini G Fettucciari K Riccardi C Marconi P Di Nardo P Grignani F Binaglia L Vecchini A Eicosapentaenoic acid demethylates a single CpG that mediates expression of tumor suppressor CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein delta in U937 leukemia cells Journal of Biological Chemistry 2011 286 27092 102 21659508 10.1074/jbc.M111.253609 PMC3149302

47 Aires V Hichami A Filomenko R Ple A Rebe C Bettaieb A Khan NA Docosahexaenoic acid induces increases in Ca2+ (i) via inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate production and activates protein kinase C gamma and -delta via phosphatidylserine binding site: implication in apoptosis in U937 cells Molecular Pharmacology 2007 72 1545 56 17878267 10.1124/mol.107.039792

48 Aires V Hichami A Moutairou K Khan NA Docosahexaenoic acid and other fatty acids induce a decrease in pH i in jurkat t-cells British Journal of Pharmacology 2003 140 1217 26 14645139 10.1038/sj.bjp.0705563 PMC1574148

49 Gamberucci A Fulceri R Benedetti A Bygrave FL On the mechanism of action of econazole, the capacitative calcium inflow blocker Biochemical and biophysical research communications 1998 248 75 7 9675088 10.1006/bbrc.1998.8810

50 Jan CR Ho CM Wu SN Tseng CJ Multiple effects of econazole on calcium signaling: depletion of thapsigargin-sensitive calcium store, activation of extracellular calcium influx, and inhibition of capacitative calcium entry Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA)-Molecular Cell Research 1999 1448 533 42 9990306 10.1016/s0167-4889(98)00159-1

51 Cha MC Aldred A Stewart C Meckling KA Dietary docosahexaenoic acid levels influence the outcome of arabinosylcytosine chemotherapy in L1210 leukemic mice Nutrition and Cancer 2002 44 175 81 10.1207/S15327914NC4402_09 12734065

52 Finch ER Kudva AK Quickel MD Goodfield LL Kennett MJ Whelan J Paulson RF Prabhu KS Chemopreventive effects of dietary eicosapentaenoic acid supplementation in experimental myeloid leukemia Cancer Prevention Research 2015 8 989 99 26290393 10.1158/1940-6207.CAPR-15-0050 PMC4596789

53 Speizer LA Watson MJ Brunton LL Differential effects of omega-3 fish oils on protein kinase activities in vitro American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism 1991 261 E109 E14 10.1152/ajpendo.1991.261.1.E109 1858866

54 Harris M Kinnun JJ Kosaraju R Leng X Wassall SR Shaikh SR Membrane disordering by eicosapentaenoic acid in B lymphomas is reduced by elongation to docosapentaenoic acid as revealed with solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy of model membranes The Journal of nutrition 2016 146 1283 9 27306897 10.3945/jn.116.231639 PMC4926856

55 Kinsella JE Black JM Effects of polyunsaturated fatty acids on the efficacy of antineoplastic agents toward L5178Y lymphoma cells Biochemical pharmacology 1993 45 1881 7 8494547 10.1016/0006-2952(93)90447-5

56 Heimli H Finstad HS Drevon CA Necrosis and apoptosis in lymphoma cell lines exposed to eicosapentaenoic acid and antioxidants Lipids 2001 36 613 11485166 10.1007/s11745-001-0765-x

57 Heimli H Giske C Naderi S Drevon CA Hollung K Eicosapentaenoic acid promotes apoptosis in ramos cells via activation of caspase-3 and-9 Lipids 2002 37 797 12371751 10.1007/s11745-002-0963-6

58 Heimli H Hollung K Drevon CA Eicosapentaenoic acid-induced apoptosis depends on acyl CoA-synthetase Lipids 2003 38 263 12784866 10.1007/s11745-003-1059-z

59 Ogilvie GK Fettman MJ Mallinckrodt CH Walton JA Hansen RA Davenport DJ Gross KL Richardson KL Rogers Q Hand MS Effect of fish oil, arginine, and doxorubicin chemotherapy on remission and survival time for dogs with lymphoma Cancer 2000 88 1916 28 10760770

60 Tisdale MJ Inhibition of lipolysis and muscle protein degradation by EPA in cancer cachexia Nutrition 1996 12 S31 S3 8850217 10.1016/0899-9007(96)90015-5

61 Horrobin D Fokkema MR Muskiet FA The effects on plasma, red cell and platelet fatty acids of taking 12g/day of ethyl-eicosapentaenoate for 16 months: dihomogammalinolenic, arachidonic and docosahexaenoic acids and relevance to Inuit metabolism Prostaglandins, leukotrienes and essential fatty acids 2003 68 301 4 10.1016/s0952-3278(03)00007-3 12711245

62 Horrobin DF A low toxicity maintenance regime, using eicosapentaenoic acid and readily available drugs, for mantle cell lymphoma and other malignancies with excess cyclin D1 levels Medical hypotheses 2003 60 615 23 12710892 10.1016/s0306-9877(03)00075-6

63 Cvetković Z Vučić V Cvetković B Petrović M Ristić-Medić D Tepšić J Glibetić M Abnormal fatty acid distribution of the serum phospholipids of patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma Annals of hematology 2010 89 775 82 20127484 10.1007/s00277-010-0904-6

64 Puertollano MA de Pablo MA Alvarez de Cienfuegos G Polyunsaturated fatty acids induce cell death in YAC-1 lymphoma by a caspase-3-independent mechanism Anticancer research 2002 23 3905 10 14666695

65 de Lima TM Amarante-Mendes GP Curi R Docosahexaenoic acid enhances the toxic effect of imatinib on Bcr-Abl expressing HL-60 cells Toxicology in vitro 2007 21 1678 85 17604596 10.1016/j.tiv.2007.05.008

66 Ding WQ Lind SE Phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase plays a role in protecting cancer cells from docosahexaenoic acid-induced cytotoxicity Molecular Cancer Therapeutics 2007 6 1467 74 17431126 10.1158/1535-7163.MCT-06-0608

67 Cvetković Z Vučić V Cvetković B Karadžić I Ranić M Glibetić M Distribution of plasma fatty acids is associated with response to chemotherapy in non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma patients Medical Oncology 2013 30 741 24085546 10.1007/s12032-013-0741-2

68 Ding WQ Liu B Vaught JL Palmiter RD Lind SE Clioquinol and docosahexaenoic acid act synergistically to kill tumor cells Molecular Cancer Therapeutics 2006 5 1864 72 16891473 10.1158/1535-7163.MCT-06-0067

69 Liu QY Tan BKH Effects of cis-unsaturated fatty acids on doxorubicin sensitivity in P388/DOX resistant and P388 parental cell lines Life Sciences 2000 67 1207 18 10954054 10.1016/s0024-3205(00)00714-1

70 Obajimi O Black KD MacDonald DJ Boyle RM Glen I Ross BM Differential effects of eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids upon oxidant-stimulated release and uptake of arachidonic acid in human lymphoma U937 cells Pharmacological research 2005 52 183 91 15967385 10.1016/j.phrs.2005.02.024

71 Finstad HS Dyrendal H Wik Myhrstad MC Heimli H Drevon CA Uptake and activation of eicosapentaenoic acid are related to accumulation of triacylglycerol in Ramos cells dying from apoptosis Journal of Lipid Research 2000 41 554 63 10744776

72 Williams EE Jenski LJ Stillwell W Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) alters the structure and composition of membranous vesicles exfoliated from the surface of a murine leukemia cell line Biochimica et Biophysica Acta - Biomembranes 1998 1371 351 62 10.1016/s0005-2736(98)00039-x 9630720

73 Lien EL Toxicology and safety of DHA Prostaglandins, leukotrienes and essential fatty acids 2009 81 125 32 10.1016/j.plefa.2009.05.004 19501496

74 Maki KC Yurko-Mauro K Dicklin MR Schild AL Geohas JG A new, microalgal DHA-and EPA-containing oil lowers triacylglycerols in adults with mild-to-moderate hypertriglyceridemia Prostaglandins, Leukotrienes and Essential Fatty Acids (PLEFA) 2014 91 141 8 10.1016/j.plefa.2014.07.012 25123060

75 Bayram I Erbey F Celik N Nelson JL Tanyeli A The use of a protein and energy dense eicosapentaenoic acid containing supplement for malignancy-related weight loss in children Pediatric Blood and Cancer 2009 52 571 4 19090549 10.1002/pbc.21852

76 Calviello G Serini S Piccioni E Pessina G Antineoplastic Effects of N-3 Polyunsaturated fatty acids in combination with drugs and radiotherapy: preventive and therapeutic strategies Nutrition and Cancer-an International Journal 2009 61 287 301 10.1080/01635580802582777 19373602

77 Colomer R Moreno-Nogueira JM Garcia-Luna PP Garcia-Peris P Garcia-de-Lorenzo A Zarazaga A Quecedo L del Llano J Usán L Casimiro C n-3 Fatty acids, cancer and cachexia: a systematic review of the literature British Journal of Nutrition 2007 97 823 31 17408522 10.1017/S000711450765795X

78 Burns CP Halabi S Clamon G Kaplan E Hohl RJ Atkins JN Schwartz MA Wagner BA Paskett E Phase II study of high-dose fish oil capsules for patients with cancer-related cachexia Cancer 2004 101 370 8 15241836 10.1002/cncr.20362

79 Fearon K Von Meyenfeldt M Moses A Van Geenen R Roy A Gouma D Giacosa A Van Gossum A Bauer J Barber MD Aaronson NK Voss AC Tisdale MJ Effect of a protein and energy dense N-3 fatty acid enriched oral supplement on loss of weight and lean tissue in cancer cachexia: a randomised double blind trial Gut 2003 52 1479 86 12970142 10.1136/gut.52.10.1479 PMC1773823

80 Obajimi O Black KD Glen I Ross BM Antioxidant modulation of oxidant-stimulated uptake and release of arachidonic acid in eicosapentaenoic acid-supplemented human lymphoma U937 cells Prostaglandins, leukotrienes and essential fatty acids 2007 76 65 71 10.1016/j.plefa.2006.11.001 17198751

81 Belcher LA MacKenzie SA Donner M Sykes GP Frame SR Gillies PJ Safety assessment of EPA-rich triglyceride oil produced from yeast: genotoxicity and 28-day oral toxicity in rats Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology 2011 59 53 63 20868718 10.1016/j.yrtph.2010.09.007

82 Tsikas D Stichtenoth DO Dietary eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) to produce antileukemic cyclopentenone prostaglandin J3? Blood 2012 119 2967 8 22442337 10.1182/blood-2012-01-403105

83 Chagas TR Borges D Oliveira P Mocellin MC Barbosa AM Camargo C JÂG Del Moral Poli A Calder PC Trindade EBSM Nunes EA Oral fish oil positively influences nutritional-inflammatory risk in patients with haematological malignancies during chemotherapy with an impact on long-term survival: a randomised clinical trial Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics 2017 30 681 692 28374923 10.1111/jhn.12471

84 Ambika Devi M Das NP Antiproliferative effect of polyunsaturated fatty acids and interleukin-2 on normal and abnormal human lymphocytes Experientia 1994 50 489 92 8194587 10.1007/BF01920754

85 Fahrmann JF Hardman WE Omega 3 fatty acids increase the chemo-sensitivity of B-CLL-derived cell lines EHEB and MEC-2 and of B-PLL-derived cell line JVM-2 to anti-cancer drugs doxorubicin, vincristine and fludarabine Lipids in Health and Disease 2013 12 23497075 10.1186/1476-511X-12-36 PMC3627749

86 Stillwell W Ehringer W Jenski LJ Docosahexaenoic acid increases permeability of lipid vesicles and tumor cells Lipids 1993 28 103 8 8441334 10.1007/BF02535772

87 Yonezawa Y Hada T Uryu K Tsuzuki T Eitsuka T Miyazawa T Murakami-Nakai C Yoshida H Mizushina Y Inhibitory effect of conjugated eicosapentaenoic acid on mammalian DNA polymerase and topoisomerase activities and human cancer cell proliferation Biochemical Pharmacology 2005 70 453 60 15963470 10.1016/j.bcp.2005.05.008