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World J Gastroenterol. Aug 14, 2014; 20(30): 10305-10315
Published online Aug 14, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i30.10305
Published online Aug 14, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i30.10305
Bowman-Birk inhibitors from legumes as colorectal chemopreventive agents
Alfonso Clemente, Maria del Carmen Arques, Department of Physiology and Biochemistry of Nutrition, Estación Experimental del Zaidín (CSIC), 18008 Granada, Spain
Author contributions: Clemente A and Arques MC designed and wrote the paper.
Supported by ERDF-co-financed grant from the Spanish CICYT, No. AGL2011-26353 to Clemente A; Clemente A involved in COST Action FA1005 INFOGEST on Food Digestion
Correspondence to: Alfonso Clemente, PhD, Department of Physiology and Biochemistry of Nutrition, Estación Experimental del Zaidín (CSIC), Profesor Albareda 1, 18008 Granada, Spain. alfonso.clemente@eez.csic.es
Telephone: +34-958-572757 Fax: +34-958-572753
Received: November 13, 2013
Revised: February 21, 2014
Accepted: April 21, 2014
Published online: August 14, 2014
Revised: February 21, 2014
Accepted: April 21, 2014
Published online: August 14, 2014
Core Tip
Core tip: Bowman-Birk inhibitors (BBI) from legumes, such as soybean, pea, lentil and chickpea, are a class of naturally-occurring serine protease inhibitors with potential anti-inflammatory and chemopreventive properties within the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). BBI are extensively disulphide-linked within proteins and have been demonstrated to be structurally and functionally resistant to the challenges of the GIT in vivo. Recent data suggest that trypsin- and chymotrypsin-like proteases involved in early stages of carcinogenesis should be primary targets in investigating the potential of BBI as colorectal chemopreventive agents; so far, the therapeutic targets as well as action mechanism of BBI remain unknown.