Chemopreventive effect of dietary inclusion with Crassocephalum rubens (Juss ex Jacq) leaf on N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU)-induced colorectal carcinogenesis in Wistar rats

Chemoprevention leverages the ability of natural products to interfere with disease onset and progression. In this study, the preventive effect of dietary inclusion with Crassocephalum rubens at 0, 2.5, 5 and 10% levels on colorectal carcinogenesis initiated by N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU) instillations in male Wistar rats was explored following 12 weeks of treatment. Results showed that dietary inclusion with C. rubens particularly at the 10% level significantly lowered lipid peroxidation, systemic inflammation, serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), colon epithelial damage and aberrant expression of the mismatch repair protein MLH-1. The activity of superoxide dismutase and catalase were elevated in C. rubens fed subjects compared with MNU-only treatment controls. These observations correlated at p < 0.05 with polyphenols and flavonoids contents of the plant, suggesting that consumption of C. rubens could be effective in preventing the onset and progression of chemically induced colon carcinogenesis.