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Study suggests acai berries may help fight cancer
By ALEX TIEGEN - Alligator Contributing Writer, Alligator.com, January 2006

UF [University of Florida] scientists discovered that Brazilian acai berries, native to the Amazon floodplains, have shown an ability to combat cancerous cells in lab tests.

These scientists are beginning to test the berry's effect on human subjects.

Stephen Talcott, an assistant professor in the Food Science & Human Nutrition department, and a team of researchers revealed in a report published Thursday that chemical compounds extracted from the acai berry could battle human-cultured leukemia cells.

Acai berries, which grow on palm trees and have been eaten by indigenous communities for hundreds of years, have been used for pulp in many health drinks, but few researchers had tested the berry's effect on cancer since it became available for use outside of Brazil five years ago.

"We try not to assume that a plant used in food or health drinks has medical use," Talcott said. "In this type of experiment we look for two things. We try to see if the cancerous cells are dying, and we try to see if the cells release an enzyme known as caspase-3."

Caspase-3 is an enzyme released by cancerous cells as they die.

Talcott's team selected five samples from an acai berry and introduced them to a leukemia cell, according to Talcott's summary report of the experiment.

Depending on their concentration, the chemical compounds from the acai berry caused a fatal response in 25 percent to 84 percent of the collected leukemia cells, according to Talcott's report.

But Talcott and his team are hesitant to say that acai berries can combat or cure cancer in human subjects. Testing on humans began in November, but Talcott will not reveal the results until after the experiments end later this month or in February.

"What we're looking for is whether the test subjects have lower blood pressure or lower cholesterol and whether the berries are absorbed into the blood stream," Talcott said.

If the acai berry study reveals more benefits for human subjects, Talcott and his team may recommend adding them to peoples' diets.

"We're always reluctant to say a fruit can cure or prevent cancer," he said.

References:

Brazilian berry destroys cancer cells in lab, UF study shows. January 2006. University of Florida http://news.ufl.edu/2006/01/12/berries/

Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry http://pubs.acs.org/journals/jafcau/index.html

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