Article

Evaluation of Cucurbita pepo L. lipophilic extract on androgen-induced prostatic hyperplasia

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Abstract

Oil from pumpkin seeds has been widely used in the treatment of prostatic hyperplasia. In the present paper, the effect of lipophilic extract of Cucurbita pepo L seeds (ELMSC) was studied in an in vivo model of testosterone propionate -induced experimental prostatic hyperplasia during 15 days. It was found that ELMSC at doses of 400 and 200 mg/kg caused a significant decrease of prostatic growth. Our findings showed that doses of ELMSC over 200 mg/kg inhibits the testosterone-induced prostatic growth in the experimental model of prostatic hyperplasia in rats.

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... pepo) is a seasonal vegetable that contains a number of beneficial micronutrients such as minerals, carotenoids, vitamin C, phenolic compounds, etc. [6][7][8][9]. It has been used in traditional folk medicine to treat colds and alleviate aches, due to its antioxidant/anti-radical, anti-carcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antimicrobial and analgesic activities [10][11][12][13][14]. ...
... Wang et al. [14] observed a significant dose-dependent inhibitory effect against HeLa and HepG cell growth of the extract of C. pepo fruits. Menéndez et al. [10] also reported also a significant decrease of the growth of prostatic hyperplasia by extract of C. pepo seeds at the tested concentrations (400 and 200 mg/kg). However no studies have been carried out to demonstrate the presence or absence of in vivo activity of Zucchini fruit and about the mechanisms of action of their antioxidant compounds. ...
... Wang et al. [14] observed a significant dose-dependent inhibitory effect against HeLa and HepG cell growth using ethanolic extracts of C. pepo fruits. Menéndez et al. [10] remarked a significant decrease of the prostatic growth using a lipophilic extract of C. pepo seeds at doses of 400 and 200 mg/kg. Shokrzadeh et al. [13] used hydroalcoholic extracts of C. pepo leaves on normal [Chinese hamster ovarian cells (CHO) and rat fibroblast] and cancer (HepG2 and CT26) cell lines with the following rank of inhibition ability: CHO < fibroblast < CT26 < HepG2 (being the lowest and the highest IC50 for HepG2: 132.6 µg/mL, and for fibroblast:293.2 ...
Preprint
Zucchini (Cucurbita pepo subsp. pepo) is a seasonal vegetable with high nutritional and medical value. Many useful properties of this fruit are attributed to its bioactive compounds. Zucchini fruits (“Yellow” and “Light Green” varieties) and four distinctive components (lutein, β-carotene, zeaxanthin and dehydroascorbic acid)were selected. Firstly it was determinated the lutein, β-carotene, zeaxanthin and dehydroascorbic acid content in these fruits and then, in order to measure the safety and suitability of their use different assays were carried out: (i) Genotoxicity and antigenotoxicity tests to determine the safety and DNA-protection against hydrogen peroxide; (ii) cytotoxicity and (iii) DNA fragmentation assay to evaluate the proapoptotic effect. Results showed that: (i) all the substances were non-genotoxic, (ii) all the substances were antigenotoxic except the highest concentration of lutein, (iii) “Yellow” Zucchini epicarp and mesocarp exhibited the highest cytotoxic activity (IC50 > 0.1 mg/mL and 0.2 mg/mL, respectively) and iv) “Light Green” Zucchini skin and pulp induced internucleosomal DNA fragmentation . To sump up, Zucchini fruit could play a positive role in human health and nutrition due to this fruit and its components were safe, able to inhibit significantly the H2O2-induced damage and exhibit antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic properties toward HL60 tumour cells. The information generated from this research should take into account to select potential accessions for breeding programs purposes.
... In the medical practice urologists and Natural and Traditional Medicine specialists frequently indicate ingestion of pumpkin seeds for this affection; most of the times lacking to consider an exact dosage. A Cuban microencapsulated lipophilic extract of pumpkin seed oil (Calprost®) was obtained in the Center for Drug Research and Development (CIDEM, in Spanish) (López-Hernández et al., 2009) and its biological effects were well-proven in experimentation animals (Bellma-Menéndez et al., 2006;Tillán-Capó et al., 2009). The present investigation aims to evaluate the effect and safety of Calprost® in patients with HPB, using as control group patients treated with terazosin. ...
... In this study the urinary output flow in rats was improved, given by the relaxation of smooth muscle and the reduction of the symptomatology caused by urinary retention (Tillán-Capó et al., 2009). A dose higher than 200 mg/kg of the extract inhibited testosterone-induced prostatic growth in an experimental murine model of BPH (Bellma-Menéndez et al., 2006). Experimental pharmacology studies conducted in different biomodels of inflammation demonstrated anti-inflammatory effect of the extract inhibiting induction of cyclooxygenase. ...
... In the medical practice urologists and Natural and Traditional Medicine specialists frequently indicate ingestion of pumpkin seeds for this affection; most of the times lacking to consider an exact dosage. A Cuban microencapsulated lipophilic extract of pumpkin seed oil (Calprost®) was obtained in the Center for Drug Research and Development (CIDEM, in Spanish) (López-Hernández et al., 2009) and its biological effects were well-proven in experimentation animals (Bellma-Menéndez et al., 2006;Tillán-Capó et al., 2009). The present investigation aims to evaluate the effect and safety of Calprost® in patients with HPB, using as control group patients treated with terazosin. ...
... In this study the urinary output flow in rats was improved, given by the relaxation of smooth muscle and the reduction of the symptomatology caused by urinary retention (Tillán-Capó et al., 2009). A dose higher than 200 mg/kg of the extract inhibited testosterone-induced prostatic growth in an experimental murine model of BPH (Bellma-Menéndez et al., 2006). Experimental pharmacology studies conducted in different biomodels of inflammation demonstrated anti-inflammatory effect of the extract inhibiting induction of cyclooxygenase. ...
Article
Full-text available
Context: Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) is a common disease that course with Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms (LUTS), mainly in over 50 years-old men. Commonly indicated drugs such as alpha adrenergicblockers are life-treatment with some adverse reactions. Center for Drug Research and Development produce a microencapsulated lipophilic extract of pumpkin seed oil (Calprost® ) with anti-androgenic, antiinflammatory, antioxidant, antiproliferative and diuretic properties. Aims: To evaluate the effect and safety of Calprost® in patients with BPH and LUTS. Methods: A multicenter, randomized, controlled, open exploratory clinical trial was conducted. Two experimental groups, study group (Calprost® , 140 mg daily) (n=81), and control group (terazosin, 2 mg daily) (n=50) were conformed. All the patients were treated during three months. Efficacy was evaluated through International Prostate Symptoms Score (IPSS), residual bladder volume and prostate volume. Results: Most of the included patients (74.0%) were white skin color and their mean age was 66 yrs. Fifteen patients, nine of them from terazosin group, withdraw the trial voluntarily. A significant reduction in the overall IPSS scale was obtained for both groups. Nevertheless, some obstructive (intermittency, straining) and irritative (frequency, urgency) urinary symptoms decreased more markedly in the Calprost® group being milder. Median residual and prostatic volumes decreased significantly (p=0.048 and p=0.002, respectively) only into the Calprost® group. Most of the adverse events were recorded in the terazosin group (79.4%), where postural hypotension prevailed. Conclusions: The natural product Calprost® was probed as a successful treatment of patients with BPH/LUTS, being also well-tolerated.
...  Ещё одна исследовательская группа в ходе эксперимента «в пробирке» зафиксировала значительное уменьшение роста клеток при гиперплазии предстательной железы, когда был испытан экстракт семян цукини в концентрации 200 и 400 мг/кг. Учёные предположили, что здесь определяющую роль сыграли антиоксиданты, но уточнили, что механизм такого влияния ещё полностью не изучен [4] .  На острове Менорка (Испания) учёные наблюдали за беременными женщинами, а потом за их детьми (от рождения до 6,5 лет), изучая влияние рациона у женщин во время беременности и у рождённых ими детей на развитие астмы и детской аллергии. ...
Article
В статье рассмотрены основные свойства кабачка и его воздействие на организм человека. Проведен систематический обзор современной специализированной литературы и актуальных научных данных. Указан химический состав и пищевая ценность овоща, рассмотрено использование в различных видах медицины и эффективность его применения при различных заболеваниях. Отдельно проанализированы потенциально неблагоприятные эффекты кабачка на организм человека при определенных медицинских состояниях и заболеваниях. Рассмотрены научные основы диет с его применением. Расширенная HTML версия статьи приведена на сайте edaplus.info.
... pepo) is a seasonal vegetable that contains a number of beneficial micronutrients such as minerals, carotenoids, vitamin C, phenolic compounds, etc. [38] [39] [40]. It has been used in traditional folk medicine to treat colds and alleviate aches, due to its antioxidant/anti-radical, anti-carcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antimicrobial and analgesic activities [41] High-Fat Diets. The results of this study showed that the final body weight after 8 weeks in group Co.(+) was significantly higher compared to the corresponding values of groups Co. (−), G 1, G 2 and G3. ...
... It is particularly important in Asian, American and Mediterranean countries, being Mexico and Spain the main worldwide exporter (http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QC). This seasonal vegetable plays an important part in healthy nutrition due to its low-calories, high nutritional compounds and medical value 1 . The main components of summer squash are carbohydrates which represent the 85-90% of the total dry matter 2 . ...
Article
Background: Zucchini fruit plays an important part in healthy nutrition due to its high content of carbohydrates. Recent studies have demonstrated the feasibility of Vis/NIRS to predict quality profile. However, this procedure has not been applied to determinate carbohydrates. Results: VIS-NIR and wet chemical methods were used to determinate individual sugars and starch in zucchini fruits. By applying a principal component analysis (PCA) with NIR spectral data a differentiation between the less sweet vs. the sweetest zucchini accessions could be found. For the determination of carbohydrate content effective prediction models for individual sugars such as glucose, fructose, sucrose and starch by using partial least square (PLS) regression have been developed. Conclusion: The coefficients of determination in the external validation (R(2) VAL) ranged from 0.66 to 0.85. The standard deviation (SD) to standard error of prediction ratio (RPD) and SD to range (RER) were variable for different quality compounds and showed values that were characteristic of equations suitable for screening purposes. From the study of the MPLS loadings of the first three terms of the different equations for sugars and starch, it can be concluded that some major cell components as pigments, cellulose, organic acids highly participated in modelling the equations for carbohydrates.
... Wang et al. [15] observed a significant dose-dependent inhibitory effect against HeLa and HepG cell growth using ethanolic extracts of C. pepo fruits. Menéndez et al. [11] remarked a significant decrease of the prostatic growth using a lipophilic extract of C. pepo seeds at doses of 400 and 200 mg/kg. Shokrzadeh et al. [14] used hydro-alcoholic extracts of C. pepo leaves on normal (Chinese hamster ovarian cells (CHO) and rat fibroblast) and cancer (liver hepatocellular cells HepG2 and colon carcinoma cell CT26) cell lines with the following rank of inhibition ability: CHO < fibroblast < CT26 < HepG2 (being the lowest and the highest IC 50 for HepG2: 132.6 µg/mL; and for fibroblast: 293.2 µg/mL) cell lines. ...
Article
Full-text available
Zucchini (Cucurbita pepo subsp. pepo) is a seasonal vegetable with high nutritional and medical values. Many useful properties of this fruit are attributed to bioactive compounds. Zucchini fruits (“Yellow” and “Light Green” varieties) and four distinctive components (lutein,β-carotene, zeaxanthin and dehydroascorbic acid) were selected. Firstly, the lutein,β-carotene, zeaxanthin and dehydroascorbic acid contents were determined in these fruits. Then, in order to evaluate the safety and suitability of their use, different assays were carried out: (i) genotoxicity and anti-genotoxicity tests to determine the safety and DNA-protection against hydrogen peroxide; (ii) cytotoxicity; and (iii) DNA fragmentation and Annexin V/PI (Propidium Iodide) assays to evaluate the pro-apoptotic effect. Results showed that: (i) all the substances were non-genotoxic; (ii) all the substances were anti-genotoxic except the highest concentration of lutein; (iii) “Yellow” zucchini epicarp and mesocarp exhibited the highest cytotoxic activity (IC50 > 0.1 mg/mL and 0.2 mg/mL, respectively); and (iv) “Light Green” zucchini skin induced internucleosomal DNA fragmentation,β-carotene being the possible molecule responsible for its pro-apoptotic activity. To sum up, zucchini fruit could play a positive role in human health and nutrition due to this fruit and its components were safe, able to inhibit significantly the H2O2-induced damage and exhibit anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic activities toward HL60 (human promyelocytic leukemia cells) tumor cells. The information generated from this research should be considered when selecting potential accessions for breeding program purposes.
... Fruits and vegetables ingestion has proven to play a key role in preventing diseases due to their potent antioxidant activity, being summer squash one of the seasonal vegetables that takes part of healthy nutrition due to his low in calories and high nutritional contains and medical value (Menéndez et al., 2006;Shokrzadeh, Azadbakht, Ahangar, Hashemi, & Saeedi-Sarav, 2010). This vegetable is originated in the tropical and subtropical regions of America, although it could be considered as widespread growing under different climate conditions. ...
... This group of chemical compounds is widely distributed in vegetables and can be classified based on their chemical structure, ranging from simple molecules such as phenolic acids, to highly polymerized compounds such as tannins (Pietta, Minoggio, & Bramati, 2003). The zucchini (Cucurbita pepo L.), of the Cucurbitaceae family, is low in calories and contains high nutritional (National Food Institute, 2009) and medical value (Menéndez et al., 2006; Shokrzadeh, Azadbakht, Ahangar, Hashemi, & Saeedi Saravi, 2010). These fruits can be found in many shapes, from spherical to elongated, and they vary in skin color from dark to light green, sometimes with fine white mottling or stripes. ...
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Epidemiological studies reveal the fact that the risk for the development of chronic diseases including cancer and cardiovascular diseases can be reduced by consuming sufficient quantity of fruits and vegetables in the diet. Phytochemicals are bioactive compounds that are present in fruits and vegetables, which prevent the cells from damage and help in disease prevention. In the present study, seasonal vegetable zucchini (“green” and “yellow”) were taken into consideration because of their high medicinal and nutritional value. To evaluate their suitability for use different assays were carried out such as DPPH scavenging assay, hydrogen peroxide scavenging assay, ferric reducing antioxidant power assay and total antioxidant activity assay were performed for the determination of antioxidant activity. Anti-inflammatory capacity was assayed by nitric oxide scavenging assay. Green zucchini exhibits greater scavenging activity of 38% in DPPH assay, 36% in hydrogen peroxide scavenging assay and TAC of 142.55 mg Ascorbic acid equivalent/100 g, whereas yellow zucchini exhibits scavenging activity of 36% in hydrogen peroxide scavenging assay and higher absorbance of 42 in FRAP, 73% scavenging for Nitric oxide radical scavenging assay and TAC of 162.55 mg Ascorbic acid equivalent/100 g. Antibacterial activity was determined against gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus) and gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli). Anti-fungal activity was determined against the fungus Aspergillus niger. Both Green and yellow zucchini exhibit good antibacterial and anti-fungal activity with the zone of inhibition ranges from 15 to 20 mm. Yellow Zuchini extract was found to be toxic to human lung cancer cells at lower concentrations. Thus, bio-components present in zucchini are capable of playing positive role in human health and are safe as evident from their antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and anti-proliferative activities.
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The prostate is a complex organ composed of epithelial cells and fibromuscular stroma. Benign prostatic hyperplasia is a true hyperplastic process, with an increase in the number of cells arising initially in the transition zone of the gland. Complex stromal–epithelial interactions lead to benign prostatic hyperplasia in 50 percent of men by the age of 50 years. This process requires testicular androgens and progresses with age. Aging is accompanied by an increase in symptoms of bladder obstruction or irritation attributable to benign prostatic hyperplasia. A prospective study showed that 24 percent of men with moderate symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia . . .
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Antiandrogens have high impact in medicine as they are compounds capable of decreasing the effect of benign prostatic hyperplasia, cancer, and other androgen-dependent diseases that affect a large percentage of the male population in the world. [figure: see text] Dihydrotestosterone, a 5 alpha-reductase metabolite of testosterone, has been implicated as the responsible factor of these androgen abnormalities. This fact indicates that the logical step in the treatment of these diseases is the inhibition of this enzyme activity using molecules that compete selectively with its natural substrates. The study of the pharmacological effect of antiandrogens requires specific animal models using a large number of laboratory animals. On basis of this concept, presently there is a tendency to eliminate studies with animals. In this paper we report a new method for antiandrogenic evaluation using microbial transformations.