Indian herb prevents cancer progress

CM NEWS – An Indian medicinal plant Acanthus ilicifolius shows encouraging results in preventing liver cancer cells from progressing, dubbed chemoprevention, according to a study.

What is chemoprevention? The aim of cancer chemoprevention is to circumvent the development and progression of malignant cells through the use of non-cytotoxic nutrients, herbal preparations/natural plant products, and/or pharmacological agents. Encouraging dietary intake with herbal supplements may therefore be an effective strategy to limit DNA lesions and organic injuries leading to cancers and other chronic degenerative diseases.

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Acanthus ilicifolius, popularly known as “Holly Mangrove”, is distributed widely throughout the mangroves of India, including Sunderbans in West Bengal, west coasts, and the Andamans, and in other Asian countries like Singhal, Burma, China, Thailand etc.

How has Acanthus ilicifolius been used to traditional medicines? The leaves of Acanthus ilicifolius are used to treat rheumatism, neuralgia and poison arrow wounds (Malaysia). It is widely believed among mangrove dwellers that chewing the leaves will protect against snake bite.

The pounded seeds of Acanthus ebracteatus are used to treat boils, the juice of leaves to prevent hair loss and the leaves themselves to ward off evil (Malay). Both species are also used to treat kidney stones.

The whole plant is boiled in fresh water, and the patient drinks the solution instead of water, half a glass at a time, until the signs and symptoms disappear (Thailand). Water extracted from the bark is used to treat colds and skin allergies. Ground fresh bark is used as an antiseptic.

Tea brewed from the leaves relieves pain and purifies the blood (widespread in both the Old and New World).

Liver cancer is the fifth most common cancer in the world with a poor prognosis. About three quarters of the cases of liver cancer are found in Southeast Asia, including China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, India, and Japan. The frequency of liver cancer in Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa is greater than 20 cases per 100,000 population. Moreover, recent data show the frequency of liver cancer in the U.S. overall is rising.

The study was done at the Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, Jadavpur University, India. The research team, led by Dr Malay Chatterjee, investigated the primary chemopreventive mechanisms of Acanthus ilicifolius (老鼠簕 in Chinese) in an in vivo tumour-transplanted murine model.

The results showed the aqueous leaf extract (ALE) of the plant was substantially effective in preventing hepatic DNA alterations and sister-chromatid exchanges (a type of chromosomal damage) in tumour-bearing mice.

Cancerous mice treated with the ALE significantly reduced viable tumour cell count by 68.34% when compared to the control, and restored body and organ weights almost to the normal values.

The study further demonstrated that ALE treatment was able to limit liver metallothionein expression, a potential marker for cell proliferation, and lengthen the mean survival of animals to a significant extent. The findings suggest that Acanthus ilicifolius may be used as a potential chemoprotector against hepatic neoplasia.

The results obtained from this in vivo study seem interesting and encouraging. Lack of toxicity favours further preclinical evaluation of Acanthus ilicifolius in a defined chemical carcinogenesis model.

“Our data indicate that, ALE is beneficial in restoring haematological and hepatic histological profiles and in lengthening the survival of the animals against the proliferation of ascites tumour in vivo,” the researchers write.

Elucidation of its anticarcinogenic mechanisms of action at the intricate molecular circuits, and isolation and characterization of its active principles, will provide a better understanding of the anti-cancer/chemoprevention strategy of Acanthus ilicifolius.

“If these studies are found to be really functional, we will have the beginning of a new chemoprevention program with herbal supplements that could have the broadest implications for the well-being of society,” the researchers say.

Herbal sex remedy linked to cancer

Reuters, CanWest – Two men seeking to boost sexual performance and grow bigger muscles instead ended up with advanced prostate cancer after taking “herbal” supplements, US doctors said.

They said many supplements marketed as “safe” and “natural” could contain unknown and potentially dangerous ingredients, and noted that the US Food and Drug Administration has little authority to regulate them.

“Physicians need to ask their patients not only about the prescription drugs they may be taking, but — perhaps even more importantly — about the over-the-counter drugs andsupplements, which may have a profound impact on certain health conditions,” Claus Roehrborn, chairman of urology at the University of Texas Southwestern medical school, said yesterday.

Dr Roehrborn’s team became concerned about what it calls herbal/hormonal dietary supplements, or HHDSs, after two men developed aggressive prostate cancer within months of taking the same supplement.

For legal reasons the researchers won’t name the supplement, which was removed from the market, and say they have no direct proof that the product caused the highly suspiciousprostate cancers.

The team analysed the product and found it contained two hormones — testosterone and estradiol. When the product was tested on tumour cells in the lab, it fuelled the growth ofprostate cancer cells more potently than testosterone alone, the team reported in the journal Clinical Cancer Research.”We filed an adverse event report with the FDA, who issued a warning letter. The manufacturer responded by removing this HHDS product from the market,” the researchers wrote.

“Individuals use HHDS for self-improvement, failure or distrust of conventional medicine, and because they believe that these natural products are safe and drug-free.”

The researchers searched websites promoting such products and found they promised maintenance of a “youthful” heart, relief of stress, and improvements in stamina, energy, strength and virility.

The patients, a 67-year-old and a 51-year-old, have both survived but cancer has spread throughout their bodies.

“Unlike prescription and over-the-counter drugs, the law does not require nutritional supplements to undergo pre-market approval for safety and efficacy,” the researchers wrote, with manufacturers allowed to assume the sole responsibility.

“Thus, the current Food and Drug Administration regulatory system provides little oversight or assurance that HHDS will have predictable pharmacological effects or even that product labels provide accurate information to consumers.”

A leading Canadian urologist warns that men who take nutritional supplements advertised as having male hormones are “really playing with fire.”

“Many men are on androgen replacement therapy or some kind of male hormone replacement and there’s always been a concern this may stimulate the growth of prostate cancer cells,” says Dr. Laurence Klotz, chief of the division of urology at Toronto’s Sunnybrook Health Science Centre.

“It’s a very controversial question and the answer is still not clear.”

A separate study, this one the latest to look at the risk of hormone therapy for women, found that taking an estrogen-plus-progesterone combination for as little as three years significantly increases the risk of certain breast cancers.

It was thought only women who use these hormones for at least five years have an increase in breast cancer risk.

The study involved more 1,500 postmenopausal women, age 55 to 74, in western Washington. Researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle found that women who used the combined hormone regimen had a three- to four-fold relative increased risk of lobular cancer, but only if they used the hormones for three or more years.

Lobular cancer accounts for about only 15 per cent of all invasive breast cancers. It’s hard to detect and its incidence soared 52 per cent in the U.S. between 1987 and 1999, according to the researchers.

“These findings are still of considerable public-health importance considering the estimated 57 million prescriptions for menopausal hormone therapy that continue to be filled in the United States,” lead author Dr. Christopher Li said in a release issued with the new study, published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention.

Ginseng is nature’s anti-inflammatory

CM NEWS – The famous immunological effects of ginseng have been confirmed and defined by a recent study. Ginseng is believed to have beneficial effects against human diseases, and its active components, ginsenosides, may play critical roles in its diverse physiological actions.

Researchers writing in BioMed Central’s open access Journal of Translational Medicine have shown that the herb, much used in traditional Chinese and other Asian medicine, does have anti-inflammatory effects.

What are the powers of ginseng? Ginseng roots contain multiple active constituents including ginsenosides, polysaccharides, peptides, polyacetylenic alcohols and fatty acids that have been shown to have different effects on carbohydrate and lipid metabolism as well as on the function of neuroendocrine, immune, cardiovascular and central nervous systems in humans.

Previous studies have shown that ginseng and its active components are potent immunomodulators. Their immunomodulatory effects are mostly due to its regulation of cytokine production and phagocytic activities of monocytes/macrophages and dendritic cells, as well as activation of T- and B- lymphocytes.

Ginsenosides, the steroid saponins, are major biologically active compounds of ginseng. Over 30 ginsenosides have been identified to date. Studies indicate that ginsenosides and their metabolites are responsible for many of the diverse physiological actions including the anti-inflammatory effects of ginseng.

Allan Lau led a team of researchers from the University of Hong Kong who identified seven ginseng constituents, ginsenosides, which showed immune-suppressive effects.

He said, “The anti-inflammatory role of ginseng may be due to the combined effects of these ginsenosides, targeting different levels of immunological activity, and so contributing to the diverse actions of ginseng in humans”.
The scientists treated human immune cells with different extracts of ginseng. They found that of the nine ginsenosides they identified, seven could selectively inhibit expression of the inflammatory gene CXCL-10.

Lau concludes, “Further studies will be needed to examine the potential beneficial effects of ginsenosides in the management of acute and chronic inflammatory diseases in humans”.

Uniquely, the researchers were able to holistically test the ginseng extract’s immune effects by using sophisticated purification technologies to identify individual constituents and define their bioactivity using genomics and bioactivity assays. After that, they reconstituted them back into a whole extract with definable individual ginsenosides for re-confirmation of effects. This potentially opens up a vigorous methodology to study medicinal herbs with state-of-the-art technologies.

Ginger eases nausea from cancer treatment Ginger eases nausea from cancer treatment

Ginger inhibits overian cancer cell growth

Reuters – Ginger, long used as a remedy for upset tummies, can help ease the nausea caused by cancer drugs, researchers reported.

They found the lowest doses of ginger worked best.

“Patients ask all the time what else they can do to relieve their symptoms,” Dr. Richard Schilsky, president of the American Society of Clinical Oncology and a blood cancer specialist at the University of Chicago, said in an interview.

“Ginger has been used for thousands of years for all types of stomach problems.”

Dr. Julie Ryan and colleagues at the University of Rochester in New York tested 614 people with various cancers who were being treated with chemotherapy and standard anti-nausea medications.

They got either a placebo or one of three doses of powdered ginger in a capsule.

“All of the doses of ginger were effective in reducing nausea,” Schilsky said.

The lowest two doses — half a gram and one gram of powdered ginger — were more effective than 1.5 grams, Ryan’s team reported.

Ryan said it was not exactly clear how ginger helps relieve nausea in these patients. “There is other research that shows it is a potent anti-inflammatory agent in the gut,” she told reporters in a telephone briefing.

She said it might be possible to get the same effect by eating ginger cookies, depending on how much ginger is used.

Tai chi soothes pain in arthritis sufferers

CM NEWS – The results of a new analysis have provided good evidence to suggest that Tai Chi is beneficial for arthritis. Specifically, it was shown to decrease pain with trends towards improving overall physical health, level of tension and satisfaction with health status.

Musculoskeletal pain, such as that experienced by people with arthritis, places a severe burden on the patient and community and is recognized as an international health priority. Exercise therapy including such as strengthening, stretching and aerobic programs, have been shown to be effective for arthritic pain. Tai Chi, is a form of exercise that is regularly practiced in China to improve overall health and well-being. It is usually preformed in a group but is also practiced individually at one’s leisure, which differs from traditional exercise therapy approaches used in the clinic.

Recently, a new study examined the effectiveness of Tai Chi in decreasing pain and disability and improving physical function and quality of life in people with chronic musculoskeletal pain. The study is published in the June issue of Arthritis Care & Research. Led by Amanda Hall of The George Institute in Sydney, Australia, researchers conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis. They analyzed seven eligible randomized controlled trials that used Tai Chi as the main intervention for patients with musculoskeletal pain. The results demonstrate that Tai Chi improves pain and disability in patients suffering arthritis.

The authors state, “The fact that Tai Chi is inexpensive, convenient, and enjoyable and conveys other psychological and social benefits supports the use this type of intervention for pain conditions such as arthritis.”

“It is of importance to note that the results reported in this systematic review are indicative of the effect of Tai Chi versus minimal intervention (usual health care or health education) or wait list control,” the authors note. Establishing the specific effects of Tai Chi would require a placebo-controlled trial, which has not yet been undertaken.

Vitamin D helps brain to work well at later age

Vitamin D may have a key role in helping the brain to keep working well in later life, suggests research published ahead of print in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery and Psychiatry.

Previous research indicates that inadequate vitamin D intake may be linked to poorer mental agility in the ageing brain, but the results have been inconsistent.
The researchers base their current findings on just over 3000 European men between the ages of 40 and 79, who were all part of the international European Male Ageing Study, drawn from eight different cities across Europe.

Their mental agility was assessed using a range of tests, designed to measure memory and speed of information processing as well as mood and physical activity levels, both of which affect mental agility.

Blood samples were then taken to measure circulating levels of vitamin D, which is obtained through dietary sources and by exposure to sunlight.

High circulating vitamin D levels were associated with high scores on the memory and information processing tests, but after adjusting for mood and physical activity, the association remained for only one of the two information processing tests.

Low vitamin D levels were associated with poor scores, with levels of 35 nmol/litre or under marking the threshold of poorer performance.

Experimental data point to the biological plausibility for an association between low circulating levels of vitamin D and poorer mental agility, but exactly how the two might be connected is not clear, say the authors.

Possible suggestions include vitamin D’s role in increasing certain hormonal activity or the protection of neurones and chemical signalling pathways.

The findings show that the magnitude of the association between vitamin D level and mental agility was comparatively small, say the authors.

But if it were possible to stave off the effects of ageing on the brain with vitamin D supplements, then the implications for population health could be quite significant, they contend, because many people, particularly in older age, arevitamin D deficient.

Acupuncture eases chronic low back pain

Acupuncture can help people with chronic low back pain feel less bothered by their symptoms and function better in their daily activities, according to the largest U.S. randomized trial of its kind, published in the May 11, 2009 Archives of Internal Medicine. But the SPINE (Stimulating Points to Investigate Needling Efficacy) trial raises questions about how the ancient practice actually works.
Compared to the group that got usual care, results were similar for all three of the SPINE trial’s acupuncture groups: individualized, standardized, and simulated (without going through skin). Of the people who got any kind of acupuncture, an extra one in five were functioning significantly better at the end of the seven-week treatment—and an extra one in eight were still functioning better at one year.

“This study suggests that acupuncture is about as effective as other treatments for chronic back pain that have been found helpful,” said SPINE trial leader Daniel C. Cherkin, PhD, a senior investigator at Group Health Center for Health Studies in Seattle. “But we found that simulated acupuncture, without penetrating the skin, produced as much benefit as needle acupuncture—and that raises questions about how acupuncture works.”

The SPINE trial included 638 adult patients at two nonprofit health plans: Group Health Cooperative in Seattle and Northern California Kaiser Permanente in Oakland. They all rated the “bothersomeness” of their chronic low back pain as at least a 3 on a 0-to-10 scale. None of them had received acupuncture before. They were randomly assigned to one of four groups:

* Individualized needle acupuncture, involving a customized prescription for acupuncture points from a diagnostician
* Standardized needle acupuncture, using a single prescription for acupuncture points on the back and backs of the legs, which experts consider generally effective for chronic low back pain
* Simulated acupuncture on those same standardized points, mimicking needle acupuncture but instead of a needle using a toothpick in a needle guide tube without penetrating the skin
* Usual care, which is the standard medical care they would have gotten anyway—and that all patients in all groups received

Everyone in the three acupuncture groups (individualized, standardized, or simulated) was treated twice a week for three weeks, and then weekly for four weeks. At eight weeks, half a year, and one year, researchers measured back-related dysfunction and how much symptoms bothered patients.

The SPINE team found that at eight weeks all three acupuncture groups were functioning substantially better, while the group getting only usual care was functioning only slightly better. Dysfunction scores improved significantly more for all three acupuncture groups than for the usual care group. These benefits lasted for a year, although they waned over time.

Notably, the outcomes for groups that received the needle and simulated forms of acupuncture did not differ significantly. So, although acupuncture effectively treated low back pain, that therapeutic benefit seemed to require neither tailoring acupuncture needle sites to an individual patient nor inserting needles into the skin.

“We don’t know precisely why people got back pain relief from the simulated acupuncture,” said Cherkin’s co-author Karen J. Sherman, PhD, MPH, a senior investigator at Group Health Center for Health Studies. “Historically, some types of acupuncture have used non-penetrating needles. Such treatments may involve physiological effects that make a clinical difference.” Or it might be all about the mind-body connection, she said: “Maybe the context in which people get treatment has effects that are more important than the mechanically induced effects.”

Western medicine does not have highly effective medical treatments for chronic back pain, Cherkin said. Back pain is the number-one reason that Americans use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), including acupuncture.

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), part of the National Institutes of Health, funded the SPINE trial.

“The findings of this research show that acupuncture-like treatments, including simulated acupuncture, can elicit positive responses,” said Josephine P. Briggs, MD, director of NCCAM. “This adds to the growing body of evidence that something meaningful is taking place during acupuncture treatments outside of actual needling. Future research is needed to delve deeper into what is evoking these responses.”

Cherkin and Sherman’s SPINE trial co-authors were Richard A. Deyo, MD, MPH, of Oregon Health & Science University in Portland; Partap S. Khalsa, DC, PhD, of NCCAM’s Division of Extramural Research; Andrew L. Avins, MD, MPH, Luisa Hamilton, MD, and Alice Pressman, MS, of NorthernCalifornia Kaiser Permanente in Oakland; William E. Barlow, PhD of Cancer Research and Biostatistics and Group Health Center for Health Studies; and Laura Ichikawa, MS, Janet H. Erro, RN, MN, Kristin Delaney, MPH, and Rene Hawkes of Group Health Center for Health Studies.

€1 million EU funding for Chinese medicine research

King’s College London – King’s College London successfully led a consortium bid for €995,100 of EU funding for a ground-breaking research project that will play an important role in the unification of Western and Chinese approaches to medicine.

The project entitled ‘Good Practice in Traditional Chinese Medicine Research in the Post-genomic Era’ (GP-TCM) will review the current status of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) research, identify problems and propose solutions by applying modern methods of investigation, as well as providing a forum for the exchange of opinions, experience and expertise among scientists in the EU and China.

The three-year project aims to propose guidelines and priority areas for future research, and will lead to the formation of a new academic society, the European Society of TCM Research, which is to facilitate and foster sustainable EU-China collaboration in this area.

The research consortium consists of 29 beneficiary partner institutions and small-and-medium-sized enterprises from the EU and China. Partnerships with more than 20 additional non-beneficiary institutions, companies and independent experts are further strengthening its research.

Holistic approach

Dr Qihe Xu, Lecturer in the Department of Renal Medicine, Division of Gene and Cell Based Therapy, and coordinator of the project, explains: ‘In contrast to the reductionist approach of Western medicine that is based on modern anatomy and cell and molecular biology, TCM uses a unique theory system and an individualised holistic approach to describe health and disease, which is based on the philosophy of Yin-Yang balance. These two medicine systems disagree with each other in many situations since they observe health from their own limited perspective. GP-TCM aims to inform best practice and harmonise research of the safety and efficacy of TCM, especially Chinese herbal medicines and acupuncture, in the EU.’

‘The project will be divided into ten parts, which will review aspects of quality control, extraction and analysis of Chinese herbal medicines. Discussion fora that explore the role of functional genomics methodology in researching the safety, efficacy and mechanisms of action of Chinese herbal medicines and acupuncture are at the core of this project. New guidelines about good practice and agreed protocols in related research areas will harmonise future TCM research in the EU, and online tools and research resources will be made available to all EU member states. As an open-start and open-ending consortium, we will invite more organisations to become involved in the work.’

Professor Peter Hylands, Head of the Department of Pharmacy and Director of the Centre for Natural Medicines Research, continues: ‘We are delighted to be part of this unique group. In the Centre for Natural Medicines Research at King’s we are examining the application of emerging technologies to the solution of difficult problems in the use of traditional medicines. This forum provides an unparalleled opportunity to share our experiences with Chinese and European colleagues and together to develop a 21st-century road map for the global development of traditional medicines.’

Professor Bruce Hendry, Professor of Renal Medicine, concludes: ‘This programme grant is an excellent opportunity for King’s College London to play a leading role in the unification of Western and Chinese approaches to medicinal therapeutics.’

TCM formula slows kidney failure

CM NEWS – A traditional herbal formula has been proved in lab that it may slow the progression of chronic kidney failure.

The formular tested is called keishibukuryogan in Japanese traditional medicine or Gui Zhi Fu Ling Wan (桂枝茯苓丸) in TCM.

In TCM, Gui Zhi Fu Ling Wan has the functions of “activating blood flow” and “removing blood stasis”. It is commonly used by women with irregular menstruation or menstrual cramps.

Gui Zhi Fu Ling Wan was also proved effective to exert anti-inflammatory effects in ischemia-reperfusion injured rats.

The formula of Gui Zhi Fu Ling Wan is as follows:

* Fu Ling (茯苓, Poria Cocos) 6g
* Gui Zhi (桂枝, Cinnamomum Ramulus) 6g
* Mu Dan Pi (牡丹皮, Paeonia Cortex) 6g
* Tao Ren (桃仁, Persica Semen) 6g
* Chi Shao (赤芍, Paeonia Rubra Radix) 6g

What is Fu Ling? Poria Cocos is a fungus in the Polyporaceae family. It is a wood-decay fungus but has a terrestrial growth habit. It is notable in the development of a large, long-lasting underground sclerotium that resembles a small coconut. This sclerotium (called “Tuckahoe”, or Indian Bread) was used by native Americans as a source of food in times of scarcity.

Fu Ling is collected between July and September. The poria with reddish inner side of the superficial layer is called red poria and the poria with white inner side of the superficial layer is called white poria. The poria produced in Yunnan Province is famous and therefore the drug is also called Yunnan poria Yunling). After collection, it is dried in shade, sliced, and used unprepared.

Property: Sweet and tasteless in flavour, neutral in property, acting on the heart, spleen and kidney channels.

Effects: Inducing diuresis, excreting dampness, invigorating the spleen, replenishing the middle-jiao, and tranquilizing the mind.

A group of Japanese researchers examined the effects of keishibukuryogan on the early stage of progressive renal failure in rats subjected to 5/6 nephrectomy.

Keishibukuryogan was given orally at a dose of 1% (w/w) and 3% (w/w) in chow. Administration of keishibukuryogan was started at 1 week after 5/6 nephrectomy and was continued for 4 weeks.

At the end of the experiment, Azan staining did not reveal any severe histological changes in the kidneys of the nephrectomized rats. On the other hand, significant increases in mRNA expressions of transforming growth factor-β1 and fibronectin related to tissue fibrosis were observed in nephrectomized rats, and they were significantly suppressed by 3% keishibukuryogan treatment.

Against gene expressions related to macrophage infiltration, 3% keishibukuryogan treatment significantly suppressed osteopontin mRNA levels, and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 mRNA levels showed a tendency to decrease, but without statistical significance.

It was also observed that 3% keishibukuryogan attenuated serum urea nitrogen and urinary protein excretion levels. From these results, it was suggested that keishibukuryogan exerts beneficial effects that result in slowing the progression of chronic renal failure.

Common herb has flavonoids that fight flu virus

CM NEWS – A commonly used Chinese herb for cold and fever contains ingredients that can fight influenza viruses, a study in China suggests.

Elsholtzia rugulosa (野拔子 ye ba zi), a common Chinese herb, is widely used in the treatment of cold and fever. A group of researchers of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, as well as University of Macau investigated the anti-flu functions of the ingredients of this plant.
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In order to elucidate the action mechanism and the active principles from the plant against anti-influenza virus, the influenza virus neuraminidase (NA) activity assay and in vitro antiviral activity assay were established, and the isolation of the active principles was guided by NA activity.

Their study established that five active constituents were found in ye ba zi and they are all flavonoids.

What are flavonoids? Flavonoids (or bioflavonoids) are a class of plant secondary metabolites fulfilling many functions including producing yellow or red/blue pigmentation in flowers and protection from attack by microbes and insects. The widespread distribution of flavonoids, their variety and their relatively low toxicity compared to other active plant compounds (for instance alkaloids) mean that many animals, including humans, ingest significant quantities in their diet. Flavonoids have been referred to as “nature’s biological response modifiers” because of strong experimental evidence of their inherent ability to modify the body’s reaction to allergens, viruses, and carcinogens. They show anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial and anti-cancer activity.

Consumers and food manufacturers have become interested in flavonoids for their medicinal properties, especially their potential role in the prevention of cancers and cardiovascular disease. The beneficial effects of fruit, vegetables, and tea or even red wine have been attributed to flavonoid compounds rather than to known nutrients and vitamins.

The five constituents are:

1. apigenin
2. luteolin
3. apiin
4. galuteolin
5. luteolin 3′-glucuronyl acid methyl ester

According to the researchers, these constituents all possessed anti-influenza virus activity. Among them, apigenin and luteolin exhibited the highest activities against influenza virus (H3N2).

What is apigenin? Apigenin is described as a nonmutagenic bioflavonoid which is presented in leafy plants and vegetables (e.g., parsley, artichoke, basil, celery) and has significant chemopreventive activity against UV-radiation. Current research trials indicate that it may reduce DNA oxidative damage; inhibit the growth of human leukemia cells and induced these cells to differentiate; inhibit cancer cell signal transduction and induce apoptosis (cell death); act as an anti-inflammatory; and as an anti-spasmodic or spasmolytic.

Apigenin is also reported to be useful in fighting against antiestrogen-resistant breast cancer.

Apigenin is a bioflavone, considered to have a bioactive effect on human health as antioxidant, radical scavenger, anti-inflammatory, carbohydrate metabolism promoter, immunity system modulater.

What is luteolin? Luteolin is a flavonoid thought to play an important role in the human body as an antioxidant, a free radical scavenger, an agent in the prevention of inflammation, a promoter of carbohydrate metabolism, and an immune system modulator. These characteristics of luteolin are also believed to play an important part in the prevention of cancer. Multiple research experiments describe luteolin as a biochemical agent that can dramatically reduce inflammation.

Luteolin inhibited the excess production of TNF-alpha, which directly causes inflammation and apoptosis. Luteolin also offers hope to develop a novel type of anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic drugs.

Luteolin is most often found in leaves, but it is also seen in rinds, barks, clover blossom and ragweed pollen. It has also been isolated from Salvia tomentosa. Dietary sources include celery, green pepper, perilla and camomile tea.

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