Disposition of soy isoflavones in normal human breast tissue

BACKGROUND: Despite decades of research on the relation between soy and breast cancer, questions regarding the absorption, metabolism, and distribution of isoflavones in breast tissue largely remain unanswered. OBJECTIVE: We evaluated the potential health effects of isoflavone consumption on normal breast tissue; isoflavone concentrations, metabolites, and biodistribution were investigated and compared with 17β-estradiol exposure. DESIGN: In this dietary intervention study, healthy women were randomly allocated to a soy milk (n = 11; 16.98-mg genistein and 5.40-mg daidzein aglycone equivalents per dose), soy supplement (n = 10; 5.27-mg genistein and 17.56-mg daidzein aglycone equivalents per dose), or control (n = 10) group. After a run-in period ≥4 d, 3 doses of soy milk or soy supplements were taken daily for 5 d before an esthetic breast reduction. Blood and breast biopsies were collected during surgery and analyzed with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. RESULTS: After soy administration, genistein and total daidzein concentrations, which were expressed as aglycone equivalents, ranged from 135.1 to 2831 nmol/L and 105.1 to 1397 nmol/L, respectively, in hydrolyzed serum and from 92.33 to 493.8 pmol/g and 22.15 to 770.8 pmol/g, respectively, in hydrolyzed breast tissue. The major metabolites identified in nonhydrolyzed samples were genistein-7-O-glucuronide and daidzein-7-O-glucuronide, with an overall glucuronidation of 98%. Total isoflavones showed a breast adipose/glandular tissue distribution of 40:60, and their mean (±SEM) derived 17β-estradiol equivalents toward estrogen receptor β were 21 ± 4-fold and 40 ± 10-fold higher than the 17β-estradiol concentrations in adipose (0.283 ± 0.089 pmol/g, P < 0.001) and glandular (0.246 ± 0.091 pmol/g, P = 0.001) fractions, respectively. CONCLUSION: After intake of soy milk and soy supplements, isoflavones reach exposure levels in breast tissue at which potential health effects may occur.