Scientists on the frontlines of the war on cancer have discovered an unlikely new ally: Grape seed extract.
Medical researchers with the University of Colorado have not only confirmed past studies that have suggested grape seed extract can destroy certain cancer cells, but also determined the compound actually becomes more effective when colorectal cancer tumors are more aggressive and spread to other parts of the body.
The findings, reported in the journal Cancer Letters, suggest the extract may become a potential new weapon in combatting cancer.
"We've known for quite a while that the bioactive compounds in grape seed extract selectively target many types of cancer cells,” said Molly Derry, a researcher with the CU Cancer Center. “This study shows that many of the same mutations that allow colorectal cancer cells to metastasize and survive traditional therapies make them especially sensitive to treatment with GSE."
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To reach their conclusions, researchers performed a series of experiments on colorectal cancer cell lines representing various stages of the disease. Derry noted it generally takes much more chemotherapy to kill advanced tumor cells, but that the UC research showed opposite was true with grape seed extract.
"It required less than half the concentration of GSE to suppress cell growth and kill 50 percent of [advanced tumor] cells than it did to achieve similar results in the [early] stage cells," Derry said.
The research team also discovered that the extract appears to target colorectal cancer by several means, including inducing a process known as oxidative stress that leads to the programmed cell death known as apoptosis.
"A colorectal cancer cell can have upwards of 11,000 genetic mutations — differences from the DNA in healthy cells,” Derry said. “Traditional chemotherapies may only target a specific mutation and as cancer progresses more mutations occur. These changes can result in cancer that is resistance to chemotherapy. In contrast, the many bioactive compounds of GSE are able to target multiple mutations. The more mutations a cancer presents, the more effective GSE is in targeting them."
Researchers added that the findings are part of an ongoing scientific initiative at UC aimed at discovering the effectiveness and action of dietary compounds against cancer.
"Finding a way to selectively target advanced colorectal cancer cells could have major clinical importance," Derry noted.
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