Pomegranate (Punica granatum) derived phytochemical actions towards prostate cancer
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Abstract
Punica granatum, also known as pomegranate, is a super fruit. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men with 30,000 reported deaths. Due to the detrimental effects of aggressive treatment regimens, research on finding natural cancer therapeutics has been ongoing for the past decades. This is intended to repurpose plant-based therapeutics in conjunction with the existing treatment with the hope of reducing the need for synthetic medications. This review provided an overview of the evidence on the promising chemopreventive effects of phenolic compounds derived from pomegranate and their action to inhibit, arrest or reverse the progression of prostate cancer through analyzing findings from in vitro, in vivo, and clinical studies. The major beneficial phenolic constituents of pomegranate are punicalagin, ellagic acid, and gallic acid. In vitro studies have shown the reduction of prostate cancer cell growth along with increased apoptosis-inducing proteins. Clinical trials among patients intervened with pomegranate extracts showed lowered oxidative stress tissue biomarker. Further studies should include pharmacological studies with prolonged and larger clinical trials to fully identify the extent of pomegranate as a cancer intervention.
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