Celery – as well as artichokes and the herb Mexican oregano – contain apigenin and luteolin, flavonoid compounds that kill human pancreatic cancer cells.
Pancreatic cancer is a very aggressive cancer, with few early symptoms; it is the fourth leading cause of cancer-related deaths, with a five-year survival rate of only 6%. Elvira de Mejia, from the University of Illinois (Illinois, USA), and colleagues have identified celery, artichokes, and the herb Mexican oregano to contain abundant levels of two flavonoid compounds – apigenin and luteolin, In a lab model of pancreatic cancer, the researchers observed that apigenin inhibited glycogen synthase kinase-3[beta] (GSK-3[beta]), which led to a decrease in the production of anti-apoptotic genes in the pancreatic cancer cells. Further, in one of the cancer cell lines, the percentage of cells undergoing apoptosis went from 8.4% in cells that had not been treated with apigenin to 43.8% in cells that had been treated with a 50-micromolar dose. In this case, no chemotherapy drug had been added. Apigenin treatment also modified gene expression, with those genes associated with pro-inflammatory cytokines becoming highly upregulated. The study authors conclude that: “Flavonoids have a protective role in pancreatic cancer tumorigenesis.”
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Jodee L. Johnson, Elvira Gonzalez de Mejia. “Flavonoid apigenin modified gene expression associated with inflammation and cancer and induced apoptosis in human pancreatic cancer cells through inhibition of GSK-3[beta]/NF-[kappa][beta] signaling cascade.” Molecular Nutrition & Food Research, 14 August 2013.