The natural compound atraric acid suppresses androgen-regulated neo-angiogenesis of castration-resistant prostate cancer ...

[FRTHBST]

Came across this tonight. According to the investigators, a compound isolated from Pygeum africanum is the first naturally occurring AR antagonist. While papers on this isolate appear more than a decade ago, the detailed discussion of various mechanisms at play as Pca evolves from castration sensitive to castration resistant is interesting. The natural compound, atraric acid, has a distinct chemical structure from the synthetic antagonists they use as comparisons, and AA seems to work on various axes even when cells have evolved to drug resistance. Pygeum bark has traditionally been used to alleviate symptoms of a swollen prostate.

[Graham49]

Original PaperPublished: 05 May 2007

Phytosterol Pygeum africanum regulates prostate cancer in vitro and in vivo

Nader S. Shenouda1,

Mary S. Sakla1,

Leslie G. Newton1,

Cynthia Besch-Williford2,

Norman M. Greenberg5,

Ruth S. MacDonald6 &

Dennis B. Lubahn1,3,4,7

Endocrine volume 31, pages 72–81 (2007)Cite this article

294 Accesses

33 Citations

1 Altmetric

Metrics details

Abstract

Background

Prostate cancer is an important public health problem. It is an excellent candidate disease for chemo-prevention because prostate cancer is typically slow growing and is usually diagnosed in elderly males. Pygeum africanum (Prunus africana or Rosaceae) is an African prune (plum) tree found in tropical Africa. An extract from the bark of Pygeum africanum has been used in Europe as a prevention and treatment of prostate disorders including benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH). More recently in the USA, the phytotherapeutic preparations of Pygeum africanum and Saw palmetto have been marketed for prostate health including prostate cancer prevention and treatment.

Methods

The anti-cancer potential of Pygeum africanum has been tested both in vitro (PC-3 and LNCaP cells) and in␣vivo (TRAMP mouse model).

Results

In tissue culture, ethanolic extracts (30%) of Pygeum africanum inhibited the growth of PC-3 and LNCaP cells; induced apoptosis and altered cell kinetics; down regulated ERα and PKC-α protein, and demonstrated good binding ability to both mouse uterine estrogen receptors and LNCaP human androgen receptors. TRAMP mice fed Pygeum africanum showed a significant reduction (P = 0.034) in prostate cancer incidence (35%) compared to casein fed mice (62.5%).

Conclusion

Pygeum africanum, which is widely used in Europe and USA for treatment of BPH, has a significant role in regulation of prostate cancer both in␣vitro and in␣vivo and therefore may be a useful supplement for people at high risk for developing prostate cancer.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

[CSHobie in reply to Graham49]

Thank you for sharing. This is very interesting, and not expensive either.

[NecessarilySo]

The Pygeum africanum supplement can be purchased on Amazon, 100 125 mg capsules for about $7. fyi

[JPnSD]

Let's hope there will be more research done on this supplement and it's interactions.