Prostate cancer is the most prevalent disease affecting males in many Western countries, with an estimated 29,480 deaths in 2014 in the US alone. Incidence rates for prostate cancer deaths have been decreasing since the early 1990s in men of all races/ethnicities, though they remain about 60% higher in African Americans than in any other group. The relationship between dietary polyphenols and the prevention of prostate cancer has been examined previously. Although results are sometimes inconsistent and variable, there is a general agreement that polyphenols hold great promise for the future management of prostate cancer. Various dietary components, including polyphenols, have been shown to possess anti-cancer properties. Generally considered as non-toxic, dietary polyphenols act as key modulators of signaling pathways and are therefore considered ideal chemopreventive agents. Besides possessing various anti-tumor properties, dietary polyphenols also contribute to epigenetic changes associated with the fate of cancer cells and have emerged as potential drugs for therapeutic intervention. Polyphenols have also been shown to affect post-translational modifications and microRNA expressions. This article provides a systematic review of the health benefits of selected dietary polyphenols in prostate cancer, especially focusing on the subclasses of polyphenols, which have a great effect on disease prevention and treatment.

The anti-proliferative activity of dietary flavonoid fisetin has been validated in various cancer models. Establishing its precise mechanism of action has proved somewhat challenging given the multiplicity of its targets. We demonstrated that YB-1 promotes epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and its inhibition suppressed tumor cell proliferation and invasion. The p90 ribosomal S6 kinase (RSK), an important ERK effector, activates YB-1 to drive melanoma growth. We found that fisetin treatment of monolayer/3-D melanoma cultures resulted in YB-1 dephosphorylation and reduced transcript levels. In parallel, fisetin suppressed mesenchymal markers and matrix-metalloproteinases in melanoma cells. Data from cell-free/cell-based systems indicated that fisetin inhibited RSK activity through binding to the kinase. Affinity studies for RSK isoforms evaluated stronger interaction for RSK2 than RSK1. Competition assays performed to monitor binding responses revealed that YB-1 and RSK2 do not compete, rather binding of fisetin to RSK2 promotes its binding to YB-1. Fisetin suppressed YB-1/RSK signaling independent of its effect on ERK, and reduced MDR1 levels. Comparable efficacy of fisetin and vemurafenib for inhibiting melanoma growth was noted albeit through divergent modulation of ERK. Our studies provide insight into additional modes of regulation through which fisetin interferes with melanoma growth underscoring its potential therapeutic efficacy in disease progression.