Benzyl isothiocyanate inhibits oncogenic actions of leptin in human breast cancer cells by suppressing activation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3.

Molecular effects of obesity, a well-established risk factor for breast cancer progression, are mediated by adipocytokine leptin. Given the important role of leptin in breast cancer growth and metastasis, novel strategies to antagonize biological effects of this adipocytokine are much desired. We showed previously that benzyl isothiocyanate (BITC), a constituent of edible cruciferous vegetables (e.g. garden cress), confers significant protection against mammary carcinogenesis in a transgenic mouse model. The present study provides first evidence for the efficacy of BITC against oncogenic effects of leptin. The BITC treatment circumvented leptin-induced clonogenicity and anchorage-independent growth of MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 human breast cancer cells. Leptin-stimulated migration and invasion of these cells was also inhibited in the presence of BITC. Analysis of the underlying molecular mechanisms revealed that BITC treatment suppressed leptin-induced Stat3 phosphorylation and cyclin D1 transactivation. The BITC-mediated inhibition of MDA-MB-231 xenograft growth correlated with a modest yet significant decrease in levels of Tyr705 phosphorylated Stat3. The BITC treatment efficiently inhibited Stat3 and SRC1 recruitment to cyclin D1 promoter in a chromatin immunoprecipitation analysis. Furthermore, overexpression of constitutively active Stat3 imparted significant protection against BITC-mediated inhibition of cyclin D1 transactivation, whereas RNA interference of Stat3 resulted in a significant increase in BITC-mediated inhibition of cyclin D1 transactivation in the presence of leptin. These results indicate that Stat3 plays an important role in BITC-mediated inhibition of leptin-induced cyclin D1 transactivation. In conclusion, BITC could potentially be a rational therapeutic strategy for breast carcinoma in obese patients with high leptin levels.