Research
Multiple Vitamins
One of the most widely-publicized research trials on antioxidants is a five-year study published earlier this year in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute involving approximately 30,000 residents of north-central China. Participants were given either a placebo or a dietary supplement containing one of seven vitamin-mineral combinations. Persons who received a daily dose of beta carotene, vitamin E and selenium had a reduced cancer rate of 13 percent.
In another recent study reported at the American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Session in November, women who consumed high amounts of antioxidant containing foods had a 33 percent lower risk of heart attack and a 71 percent lower risk of stroke, than women who ate few antioxidant-containing foods.
The study involved 1,795 female nurses, each of whom had a history of heart attack, chest pain due to coronary disease, or treatment for a blockage in a coronary artery. Food intake was analyzed according to subjects' estimated consumption of vitamins C and E, carotene and riboflavin.
Researchers found that the nurses who consumed the most dietary antioxidants had the greatest disease reduction. Individual foods most closely associated with the health benefits included carrots, spinach and other greens.
Curr Pharm Biotechnol. 2006 Feb;7(1):15-23.
Nutraceuticals--an emerging era in the treatment and prevention of cardiovascular diseases.
Ramaa CS, Shirode AR, Mundada AS, Kadam VJ.
Bharati Vidyapeeth College of Pharmacy, Sector-8, C.B.D., Belapur, Navi-Mumbai 400614, India.
Foods and nutrients play a vital role in normal functioning of the body. They are helpful in maintaining the health of the individual and in reducing the risk of various diseases. Worldwide acceptance of this fact formed a recognition link between "nutrition" and "health" and the concept of "nutraceuticals" was evolved. Nutraceuticals are medicinal foods that play a role in maintaining well being, enhancing health, modulating immunity and thereby preventing as well as treating specific diseases. Thus the field of nutraceuticals can be envisioned as one of the missing blocks in the health benefit of an individual. More than any other disease, the etiology of cardiovascular disease reveals many risk factors that are amenable to nutraceutical intervention. The scientific literature shows that several ingredients marketed for use in dietary supplements address each of these. The ability of nutraceuticals to positively influence cardiovascular risk factors should be recognized as an enormous opportunity in the treatment of a highly prevalent disease. Nutraceuticals hold promise in clinical therapy as they have the potential to significantly reduce the risk of side effects associated with chemotherapy along with reducing the global health care cost. In this review, an attempt has been made to summarize some of the recent research findings on garlic, omega-3-fatty acids, soy products, dietary fibres, vitamins, antioxidants, plant sterols, flavonoids, prebiotics and probiotics that have beneficial effects on the heart, in order to update the practising clinician on the benefit of using nutraceuticals for the management of cardiovascular diseases.
PMID: 16472130 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Pomegranate
Cell Cycle. 2006 Feb;5(4):371-3. Epub 2006 Feb 15.
Prostate cancer prevention through pomegranate fruit.
Malik A,Mukhtar H.
Department of Dermatology, University of Wisconsin, Madison 53706, USA.
Prostate cancer (CaP) is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths among U.S. males with a similar trend in many Western countries. CaP is an ideal candidate disease for chemoprevention because it is typically diagnosed in men over 50 years of age, and thus even a modest delay in disease progression achieved through pharmacological or nutritional intervention could significantly impact the quality of life of these patients. In this regard we and others have proposed the use of dietary antioxidants as candidate CaP chemopreventive agents. The fruit pomegranate derived from the tree
Punica granatum has been shown to possess strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. In a recent study, we showed that pomegranate fruit extract (PFE), through modulations in the cyclin kinase inhibitor-cyclin-dependent kinase machinery, resulted in inhibition of cell growth followed by apoptosis of highly aggressive human prostate carcinoma PC3 cells. These events were associated with alterations in the levels of Bax and Bcl-2 shifting the Bax:Bcl-2 ratio in favor of apoptosis. Further, we showed that oral administration of a human acceptable dose of PFE to athymic nude mice implanted with CWR22Rnu1 cells resulted in significant inhibition of tumor growth with concomitant reduction in secretion of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in the serum. The outcome of this study could have a direct practical implication and translational relevance to CaP patients, because it suggests that pomegranate consumption may retard CaP progression, which may prolong the survival and quality of life of the patients.
PMID: 16479165 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Nitric Oxide. 2006 Jan 11; [Epub ahead of print]
Pomegranate juice reduces oxidized low-density lipoprotein downregulation of endothelial nitric oxide synthase in human coronary endothelial cells.
Nigris F, Williams-Ignarro S, Botti C, Sica V, Ignarro LJ, Napoli C.
Department of General Pathology and Excellence Research Center on Cardiovascular Disease, University of Naples, Italy.
We examined the hypothesis that pomegranate juice (PJ) can revert the potent downregulation of the expression of endothelial nitric-oxide synthase (NOSIII) induced by oxidized low-density liporotein (oxLDL) in human coronary endothelial cells. Western blot and Northern blot analyses showed a significant decrease of NOSIII expression after a 24-h treatment with oxLDL. Accordingly, we observed a significant dose-dependent reduction in nitric oxide bioactivity represented by both basal and bradykinin-stimulated cellular cGMP accumulation. These phenomena were corrected significantly by the concomitant treatment with PJ. Our data suggest that PJ can exert beneficial effects on the evolution of clinical vascular complications, coronary heart disease, and atherogenesis in humans by enhancing the NOSIII bioactivity.
PMID: 16413211 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Noni Research
Chin J Physiol. 2004 Dec 31;47(4):169-74.
Effects of juice from Morinda citrifolia (Noni) on gastric emptying in male rats.
Pu HF, Huang WJ, Tseng WM, Wang SW, Liu YW, Doong ML, Wang PS.
Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei 11221, Taiwan, Republic of China.
The effects of juice from Morinda citrifolia (noni) on gastric emptying, gastrointestinal transit, and plasma level of cholecystokinin (CCK) in rats were studied. Male rats were given noni by gavage at levels of 0.25, 1, or 4 ml/kg once per day for one or 7 days. The rats in the control group were given water, while the rats in the experimental group were fasted overnight before measurement of gastrointestinal motility. Gastrointestinal motility was assessed in rats 15 min after intragastric instillation of a test meal containing charcoal (10%) and Na251CrO4 (0.5 microCi/ml). Gastric emptying was determined by measuring the amount of radiolabeled chromium contained in the small intestine as a percentage of the initial amount received. Then, gastrointestinal transit was evaluated by calculating the geometric center of distribution of the radiolabeled marker. Finally, blood samples were collected for measurement of CCK by radioimmunoassay. The administration of noni at 0.25 ml/kg, but not at 1 ml/kg and 4 ml/kg, for 1 day significantly inhibited gastric emptying. In contrast, gastric emptying was significantly inhibited by oral noni (0.25, 1, or 4 ml/kg) for 7 days. Intraperitoneal injection of lorglumide (5 or 10 mg/kg), a selective CCK1 receptor antagonist, effectively attenuated the noni-induced inhibition of gastric emptying. The intestinal transit and body weight, food intake, water intake, urine volume as well as feces weight were not altered by the administration of noni either acutely or chronically, but the administration of oral noni (1 ml/kg) for 7 days increased the level of plasma CCK in male rats. These results suggest that oral noni inhibits gastric emptying in male rats via a mechanism involving stimulation of CCK secretion and CCK1 receptor activation.
PMID: 15803749 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Angiogenesis. 2003;6(2):143-9.
Inhibition of angiogenic initiation and disruption of newly established human vascular networks by juice from Morinda citrifolia (noni).
Hornick CA, Myers A, Sadowska-Krowicka H, Anthony CT, Woltering EA.
Department of Physiology, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. chorni@lsuhsc.edu
noni, the juice of the fruit from the Morinda citrifolia plant, has been used for centuries as a medicinal agent. We tested the effects of noni juice in a three-dimensional fibrin clot matrix model using human placental vein and human breast tumor explants as sources for angiogenic vessel development. Noni in concentrations of 5% (vol/vol) or greater was highly effective in inhibiting the initiation of new vessel sprouts from placental vein explants, compared with initiation in control explants in media supplemented with an equivalent amount of saline. These concentrations of noni were also effective in reducing the growth rate and proliferation of newly developing capillary sprouts. When used at a concentration of 10% in growth media, noni was able to induce vessel degeneration and apoptosis in wells with established capillary networks within a few days of its application. We also found that 10% noni juice in media was an effective inhibitor of capillary initiation in explants from human breast tumors. In tumor explants which did show capillary sprouting, the vessels rapidly degenerated (2-3 days) in those exposed to media supplemented with 10% noni.
PMID: 14739620 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Integr Cancer Ther. 2002 Jun;1(2):110-20; discussion 120.
From Polynesian healers to health food stores: changing perspectives of Morinda citrifolia (Rubiaceae).
McClatchey W.
Department of Botany and Cancer Research Center of Hawai'i, Natural Products Program, University of Hawai'i, Honolulu, Hawai'i, USA. mcclatch@hawaii.edu
Morinda citrifolia L (noni) is one of the most important traditional Polynesian medicinal plants. Remedies from isolated Polynesian cultures, such as that of Rotuma, illustrate traditional indications that focus upon leaves, roots, bark, and green fruit, primarily for topical ailments. Anecdotally collected Hawaiian remedies that employ noni fruit illustrate changing usage patterns with shifts in recent times to preparation of juice made of ripe or decaying fruit. Ralph M. Heinicke promoted a wide range of claims about noni, and these seem to have fueled much of the current commercial interest in the plant. Recent studies of the proliferation of commercial products have shown that noni product manufacturers are promoting a range of therapeutic claims. These claims are based upon traditional Polynesian uses, Heinicke's ideas, and fragments of recent scientific studies including the activity of noni in the treatment of cancer. A review is provided of recent studies of potential anticancer activity of noni fruitWhile noni's anticancer potential is still being explored, it continues to be widely used by Polynesians and non-Polynesians alike for both traditional and newly hypothesized indications.
PMID: 14664736 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2001 Dec;952:161-8.
Cancer preventive effect of Morinda citrifolia (Noni).
Wang MY, Su C.
Department of Pathology, UIC College of Medicine, Rockford, Illinois 61107, USA. mianwang@uic.edu
Morinda citrifolia (Noni) has been extensively used in folk medicine by Polynesians for over 2,000 years. It has been reported to have broad therapeutic effects, including anticancer activity, in both clinical practice and laboratory animal models. The mechanism for these effects remains unknown. The hypothesis that Morinda citrifolia possesses a cancer preventive effect at the initiation stage of carcinogenesis was studied. Our preliminary data indicated that 10% Tahitian Noni Liquid Dietary Supplement or Tahitian Noni Juice (TNJ), made from Morinda citrifolia fruit by Morinda Inc, in drinking water for one week was able to prevent DMBA-DNA adduct formation. The levels of DMBA-DNA adducts were reduced by 30% in the heart, 41% in the lung, 42% in the liver, and 80% in the kidney of female SD rats. Even more dramatic results were obtained in male C57 BL-6 mice: 10% TNJ was able to reduce DMBA-DNA adduct formation by 60% in the heart, 50% in the lung, 70% in the liver, and 90% in the kidney. In order to explore the mechanism of this preventive effect, the antioxidant activity of TNJ was examined in vitro by lipid hydroperoxide (LPO) and tetrazolium nitroblue (TNB) assays. In the LPO assay, LPO oxidizes leucomethylene blue to methylene blue in the presence of hemoglobin. The resultant blue color was quantified at 660 nm spectrophotometrically. In the TNB assay, superoxide anion radicals (SAR) reduce TNB into formazan blue that was also measured by absorption at 602 nm. TNJ showed a dose-dependent inhibition of both LPO and SAR in our system. The antioxidant activity of TNJ was compared to the effects of vitamin C, grape seed powder (GSP), and pycnogenol (PYC) at the daily dose per serving level recommended by U.S.RDAs or manufacturers. The results suggest that prevention of carcinogen-DNA adduct formation and the antioxidant activity of TNJ may contribute to the cancer preventive effect of Morinda citrifolia.
PMID: 11795436 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Wolfberry Research
Zhongguo Zhong Xi Yi Jie He Za Zhi. 2006 Apr;26(4):329-31.
[Effects of jiangtang bushen recipe on serum C-reactive protein, tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-6 in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus]
[Article in Chinese]
Fan GJ, Tang XY, Li SL.
Department of Endocrinology, Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120. fgjie@tom.com
OBJECTIVE To observe the effect of Jiangtang Bushen Recipe (JBR) on inflammatory cytokines in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and explore its therapeutic mechanism. METHODS Sixty-four patients with T2DM were randomly divided into the treated group (n = 34) and the control group (n = 30). Education course, dietary treatment and conventional hypoglycemic agent were given to both groups, and JBR, mainly composed of Cibot Rhizome, Radix Dipsaci, Glossy Privet Fruit; Ecliptae Herba, Radicis Lycii, Radix Astragali, Rehmannia Dride Rhizome, etc., was given additionally to patients in the treated group, one dose a day for 4 weeks by boiled water and taking in two times. Fasting blood glucose (FBG), fasting insulin (FINS), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-a (TNF-a) and C-reactive protein (CRP) were measured, and insulin sensitive index (ISI) and clinical TCM symptom score were calculated before and after treatment.
RESULTS: After treatment, the clinical symptom score dropped in both groups (P < 0.01), and it was lower in the treated group than that in the control group (P < 0.01). At the same time, serum levels of FINS, CRP, TNF-alpha and IL-6 decreased and ISI increased significantly, the effect showed in the treated group was also superior to that in the control group (P < 0.05).
CONCLUSION: JBR, which could tonify Pi and Shen, nourish Yin and clear away heat, can improve insulin resistance and alleviate clinical symptoms of T2DM patients, the mechanism may be related with its actions in regulating the production of inflammatory cytokines and inhibiting inflammatory reac-
PMID: 16689001 [PubMed - in process]
J Ethnopharmacol. 2002 Oct;82(2-3):169-75.
Protective effect of Fructus Lycii polysaccharides against time and hyperthermia-induced damage in cultured seminiferous epithelium.
Wang Y, Zhao H, Sheng X, Gambino PE, Costello B, Bojanowski K.
Department of Histology and Embryology, Ningxia Medical College, Yinchuan, People's Republic of China.
Lycium barbarum L. (Solanaceae) is a Chinese medicinal plant whose fruits (Fructus Lycii) are used by Chinese physicians for treatment of infertility. However, the active ingredients and the mechanism of action underlying Lycium's fertility-facilitating effects remain unknown. Here we report that Fructus Lycii polysaccharides (FLPS) inhibit time- and hyperthermia-induced structural damage in murine seminiferous epithelium, in vitro. Moreover, we found that FLPS delayed apoptosis in this system, both at normothermic and hyperthermic culture conditions. Oxidative stress was reported to be a major cause of structural degradation and apoptosis in hyperthermic testes, and thus the protective effect of FLPS could implicate an antioxidant mechanism of action. To test this hypothesis we assayed the effect of FLPS on ultraviolet light-induced lipid peroxidation, and cytochrome c reduction by free radicals. We found that FLPS is a potent inhibitor of both of these reactions. Together, these results demonstrate the protective effect of FLPS on time- and hyperthermia-induced testicular degeneration in vitro, indicate the potential mechanism of action for this protective effect, and provide a scientific basis for the traditional use of this plant.
PMID: 12241992 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Sea Vegetables
Arch Latinoam Nutr. 1999 Jun;49(2):114-20.
[Nutritional evaluation and physiological effects of edible seaweeds]
[Article in Spanish]
Jimenez-Escrig A, Goni Cambrodon I.
Departamento de Metabolismo y Nutricion, Instituto del Frio, CSIC, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Espana.
A review concerning nutritional and physiological properties of edible seaweeds is presented. Seaweeds are traditionally consumed in Asia as sea vegetables, but in Western countries they have been used as sources of gelling or thickening agents. From a nutritional point of view, they are low-calorie foods, with a high concentration of minerals (Mg, Ca, P, K and I), vitamins, proteins and undigestible carbohydrates, and a low content in lipids. Quality of protein and lipid in seaweeds is acceptable comparing with other diet vegetables mainly due to their high content in essential amino acids and their relative high levels of unsaturated fatty acids. Dietary fiber content range from 33% to 75% of dry weight, and mainly consist of soluble polysaccharides (range from 17% to 59%). Seaweeds constitute a source of dietary fiber that differ chemically and physicochemically from those of land plants and thus may induce different physiological effects. Referenced data indicate that algal dietary fiber may show important functional activities, such as antioxidant, antimutagenic and anticoagulant effect, antitumor activity, and an important role in the modification of lipid metabolism in human body. In conclusion, seaweeds have a high nutritional value, therefore an increase in their consumption, would elevate the foods offer to population.
PMID: 10488389 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
