SUNDAY NOV 18, 2007 (Foodconsumer.org) -- Intake of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids may be protective against gastric cancer, according to a new Chinese study published in the November, 2007 issue of Zhonghua Wei Chang Wai Ke Za Zhi.

Yin Y from Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, China and colleagues found that omega 3 PUFAs inhibits in vitro growth of gastric cancer through promoting apoptosis, a programmed cell death that is missing in cancer cells.

For the study, the researchers treated human gastric caner cell line SGC-7901 with eicosapentaenoic acid (20:5omega-3,EPA) or docosahexaenoic acid (22:6omega-3, DHA) at concentrations of 10, 20 and 40 mug/ml.

Both EPA and DHA, two omega-fatty acids commonly found in oily fish oil, markedly inhibited the cancer cell growth and induced apoptosis in a time- and dose-dependent manner, according to the study.

The researchers wrote "Compositional and functional alterations in mitochondrial membrane may be an important initiator of apoptosis induced by omega-3PUFAs."