Nigella Sativa flowers

Mittwoch, 18. Mai 2011

Nigella sativa fights and kills pancreatic cancer


April 22nd, 2009 7:15 am MT Deborah MitchellPhoenix Alternative Medicine ExaminerSubscribeSponsor an ExaminerView all of Deborah's articlesPrintEmailShare on FacebookShare on Twitter

Nigella sativa seeds/wikipediaNigella sativa, a flowering plant that grows throughout India, Arabia, and Europe, seems to have the ability to both inhibit the development of pancreatic cancer as well as kill the cancer cells themselves.

The information was presented at the American Association for Cancer Research 100th Annual Meeting 2009 in Denver.

What is Nigella sativa?

The seeds of Nigella sativa, often referred to as black seeds or black cumin, have been used by traditional medicine practitioners for centuries to treat inflammation, infections, and cancers. In fact, previous studies have shown the herb to have anti-cancer effects on colon and prostate cancers.

The major constituent of the oil extract from the seed is thymoquinone, which is responsible for the plant’s anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. The seeds also have antioxidant effects.

Thymoquinone and pancreatic cancer

According to Hwyda Arafat, MD, PhD, and associate professor of Surgery at the Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University, thymoquinone has anti-inflammatory properties that reduce the release of substances that mediate inflammation in pancreatic cancer cells.

In the study, Dr. Arafat and her colleagues compared the anti-inflammatory effects of thymoquinone and a substance called trichostatin A, which is known to improve inflammation-associated cancers. To do this they used pancreatic cancer cells, some of which had been pretreated with TNF-alpha (tumor necrosis factor alpha), a compound that induces inflammation.

Use of thymoquinone nearly eliminated the activity of several inflammatory factors, including TNF-alpha, interleukin-1-beta, COX-2, and several others. The response to thymoquinone was far better than that of trichostatin A. Thymoquinone also inhibited the activity and synthesis of NF-kappaB, a factor involved in inflammation-associated cancer. NF-kappaB may also be a factor in pancreatic cancer’s resistance to chemotherapy.

When thymoquinone was used in animal models of pancreatic cancer, the herbal extract significantly reduced the size of 67 percent of the tumors and the levels of proinflammatory elements in the tumors as well.

The researchers believe their findings are important for people who have chronic pancreatitis and others at risk for development or recurrence of pancreatic cancer. Nigella sativa and its essential oil thymoquinone have promise as a potential preventive and treatment option for pancreatic cancer.

About pancreatic cancer

Approximately 32,000 people in the United States die each year of pancreatic cancer, making it the fourth leading cause of cancer death in the nation. It is a very deadly disease: only 5 percent of people with pancreatic cancer live for at least one year after their diagnosis.

Continue reading on Examiner.com: Nigella sativa fights and kills pancreatic cancer - Phoenix Alternative Medicine
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