Epidemiological studies implicate dietary soy
isoflavones as
breast cancer preventives, especially due to their anti-estrogenic properties. However, soy
isoflavones may also have a role in promoting
breast cancer, which has yet to be clarified. We previously reported that
equol, a metabolite of the soy
isoflavone daidzein, may advance
breast cancer potential via up-regulation of the eukaryotic
initiation factor 4GI (eIF4GI). In
estrogen receptor negative (ER-) metastatic
breast cancer cells,
equol induced elevated levels of
eIF4G, which were associated with increased cell viability and the selective translation of mRNAs that use non-canonical means of initiation, including
internal ribosome entry site (IRES), ribosome shunting, and
eIF4G enhancers. These mRNAs typically code for oncogenic, survival, and cell stress molecules. Among those mRNAs translationally increased by
equol was the oncogene and
eIF4G enhancer, c-Myc. Here we report that
siRNA-mediated knockdown of c-Myc abrogates the increase in
cancer cell viability and mammosphere formation by
equol, and results in a significant down-regulation of eIF4GI (the major
eIF4G isoform), as well as reduces levels of some, but not all,
proteins encoded by mRNAs that are translationally stimulated by
equol treatment. Knockdown of eIF4GI also markedly reduces an
equol-mediated increase in IRES-dependent mRNA translation and the expression of specific oncogenic
proteins. However, eIF4GI knockdown did not reciprocally affect c-Myc levels or cell viability. This study therefore implicates c-Myc as a potential regulator of the
cancer-promoting effects of
equol via up-regulation of eIF4GI and selective initiation of translation on mRNAs that utilize non-canonical initiation, including certain oncogenes.