Anti-inflammation: a new activity for the Pao pereira and Rauwolfia vomitoria extracts?
The broad spectrum anti-cancer activity of the Pao pereira and Rauwolfia vomitoria extracts has been proven by French and American research studies. Work from Dr. Aaron Katz’s lab at Columbia University Medical Center has shown that these two extracts possess a second activity, an anti-inflammatory effect in the human prostate.(1)
Inflammation is the body’s normal response to tissue injury, infection, toxic compounds, stress and other factors. Swelling, redness and fever are part of the response as cells of the immune system arrive at the affected tissues to fight the infection and initiate the repair process. But if the cause of the inflammation persists then the response is continuously triggered and the condition becomes chronic. Chronic prostate inflammation is fairly common in older men whose prostates become enlarged causing potentially serious urinary problems. This condition known as BPH (Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia), affects millions of men and there are few, if any, remedies without side effects.
Dr. Katz made an amazing observation: when men with urinary problems caused by BPH were given a combination of Pao pereira and Rauwolfia vomitoria, they experienced a dramatic improvement. This result demonstrated that the extracts have anti-inflammatory activity in the prostate and showed that the extracts reduce the size of the prostate, thus enabling normal urination.
The most interesting question from a scientific standpoint is how do the two extracts diminish inflammation in the prostate? In other words, what are their mechanisms of action? For example, previous work from Dr. Katz’s laboratory showed that in prostate cancer cells Pao pereira induces death through a process called apoptosis whereas Rauwolfia vomitoria stops the process of cell division which forces the cells to die. Do these same mechanisms apply when the extracts are applied to BPH cells? Or do they have an alternate action by reducing inflammatory signals and allowing the cells to return to normal?
Dr. Jun Yan and his research group at Nanjing University in China will determine how the extracts work. First, they will see what effect Pao pereira and Rauwolfia vomitoria have on the growth and viability of the BPH cells. Next, he will determine exactly how they interfere with inflammation at the biochemical level.
Dr. Yan has already studied the effect of the Pao pereira extract in advanced prostate cancer cells that no longer respond to hormone treatments(2). He found that Pao pereira specifically suppresses activation of the NFKB signaling pathway which is a major regulator of both inflammation and cancer progression. In the new experiments he will use techniques called gene expression profiling and gene ontology analysis that will trace all the active effects of Pao pereira and Rauwolfia vomitoria on inflammation pathways in BPH.
Clearly, the Pao pereira and Rauwolfia vomitoria extracts, so well known for their anti-cancer effects (3,4), are capable of doing more: they exhibit a potent anti-inflammatory effect in the prostate. And consider this: men purchasing the Pao pereira/Rauwolfia vomitoria combination for help with BPH get the anti-cancer effects for free!
REFERENCES
(1)“Pao pereira Extract Suppresses Castration- Resistant Prostate Cancer Cell Growth, Survival and Invasion Through Inhibition of NFkB Signaling” by Cunjie Chang, BS, Wei Zhao, MS, Bingxian Xie, BS, Yongming Deng, BS, Tao Han, BM, Yangyan Cui, BS, Yundong Dai, BS, Zhen Zhang, BS, Jimin Gao, MD, PhD, Hongqian Guo, MD, PhD, and Jun Yan, PhD. – Integrative Cancer Therapies 2013, Vol XX(X) 1–10.
(2)“B-Carboline Alkaloid-Enriched Extract from the Amazonian Rain Forest Tree Pao Pereira Suppresses Prostate Cancer Cells” by Debra L. Bemis, PhD, Jillian L. Capodice, LAc, MS, Manisha Desai, PhD, Aaron E. Katz, MD, Ralph Buttyan, PhD – Journal of the Society for Integrative Oncology, Vol 7, No2
(3)“Anti-prostate cancer activity of B-carboline alkaloid enriched extract from Rauwolfia vomitoria” by D.L. Bemis, J.L. Capodice, P. Gorroochurn, A.E. Katz and R. Buttyan – International Journal of Oncology 29: 1065-1073
