Induction of medulloblastoma cell apoptosis by sulforaphane, a dietary anticarcinogen from Brassica vegetables

There is increasing evidence that a variety of natural substances derived from the diet may act as potent chemopreventive agents. In this work, we show that DAOY cells, a widely used model of metastatic medulloblastoma (MBL), are highly sensitive to sulforaphane, a naturally occurring isothiocyanate from Brassica vegetables. Sulforaphane induced DAOY cell death by apoptosis, as determined by DNA fragmentation and chromatin condensation. DAOY apoptosis correlates with the induction of induced by sulforaphane were reversed by zVAD-fmk, a broad spectrum caspase inhibitor, demonstrating the important role of caspases in its cytotoxic effect. These results identify sulforaphane as a novel inducer of MBL cell apoptosis, supporting the potential clinical usefulness of diet-derived substances as chemopreventive agents. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.