Inhibition of Western-diet induced hyperproliferation and hyperplasia in mouse colon by two sources of calcium.

A Western-style diet containing high-fat and phosphate, and low calcium and vitamin D was fed to mice for 20 weeks. Starting at week 8, subgroups of animals received the Western-style diet supplemented by two different calcium sources: tricalcium phosphate and calcium citrate malate. Hyperproliferation (increased [3H]thymidine-labelled cells/colonic crypt) and hyperplasia (increased total epithelial cells/crypt) developed in the sigmoid colon after 8 weeks of feeding the Western-style diet confirming previous results, and these were reversed at later periods by the addition of the two calcium sources to the Western-style diet. Findings indicate that the modified colonic epithelial cell hyperproliferation and hyperplasia which have been associated with subsequent development of colonic neoplasia, are induced in mice fed a Western-style diet, and the addition of calcium to the diet inhibited their development in the colonic mucosa.