Researchers from the University of Windsor have discovered a substance extracted from the long pepper fruit that causes cancer cells to kill themselves.
Famous for his work on dandelion root extract and cancer, Dr. Siyaram Pandey is thrilled with his latest findings on an extract of the long pepper fruit in the fight against cancer.
“It is very potent, which is surprising, actually,” said Pandey. “I wouldn’t be exaggerating to say it’s a little bit better than dandelion root extract.”
Dr. Pandey and his group of researchers published a study on long pepper fruit and cancer in the November edition of the scholarly journal PLOS One. “Our results indicated that an ethanolic long pepper extract selectively induces caspase-independent apoptosis in cancer cells, without affecting non-cancerous cells…”, wrote the researchers.
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0113250
First identified in the 1960’s and forgotten for decades, research into a compound from the long pepper fruit was resurrected in a 2011 paper by researchers at Howard University in Boston. The paper presented the results after screening 25,000 compounds for possible cancer-fighting properties, and it listed piper longum – or long pepper – at the very top.
“So we asked the question, if they showed a single compound has activity from long pepper, why don’t we test the total extract from long pepper fruit?” asked Pandey. “We’re finding out that there are many more compounds present in the extract and they might be working in synergy against the cancer cells.”
Using alcohol to extract the active ingredients from the long pepper fruit, researchers then evaporated the alcohol, which left them a medicinal powder for their trials.
Although the project needs more funding to complete further studies, everything so far has been locally funded from donations from Seeds 4 Hope, Pajama Angels, the Knights of Columbus, and the family of Kevin Couvillion, who died in 2010 at the age of 26 after a three-year battle with myeloid leukemia.
At this point it looks like Pandey will receive all the support he needs, as he has a proven track record of support from charitable organizations such as the Toronto-based Jesse and Julie Rasch Foundation, which funds research into the effectiveness of nutritional compounds in treating lymphoma.
“One of the major struggles with cancer therapy,” said Pandey, “is whatever we use to kill cancer cells also kills healthy cells, which is a very bad side effect.”
The remarkable thing about long pepper fruit extract is that it appears to halt the energy supply of cells, leading to cancer cell death. Like many other natural nutritional approaches to cancer treatment, many of which are found in the Cancer Cures section of EndAllDisease, the long pepper fruit extract does not harm healthy cells in the process.
“It’s difficult to imagine that after 50 or 60 years of research we still don’t have a selective drug,” Pandey said. “So with the long pepper fruit, we are very excited. We feel the extract targets multiple things and forces the cell to commit suicide.”
Source: End All Disease
