MIT researchers reported on May 21 that cysteine — a sulfur-containing amino acid abundant in meat, dairy, beans and nuts — can act as a potent trigger for intestinal regeneration. Working in mice, the team led by Omer Yilmaz, director of the MIT Stem Cell Initiative and a biologist at the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, showed that a cysteine-rich diet sped up the rebuilding of intestinal lining damaged by radiation.
The mechanism runs through the immune system. Intestinal cells absorb cysteine and convert it to coenzyme A, which activates resident CD8 T cells. The activated T cells multiply and pump out IL-22, a cytokine that drives intestinal stem cells to proliferate and regrow the lining. The study was published in Nature.
"The study suggests that if we give these patients a cysteine-rich diet or cysteine supplementation, perhaps we can dampen some of the chemotherapy or radiation-induced injury," Yilmaz said, adding that "the beauty here is we're not using a synthetic molecule; we're exploiting a natural dietary compound." Human trials will be needed before dietary recommendations change for cancer patients.