Grape Seeds Could Kill Leukemia Cells
According to a recent study conducted at the University of Kentucky, a natural compound that can be extracted from grape seed could potentially kill leukemia cells. When these cancerous cells are exposed to the extract, researchers found that about 76 percent of them would be dead within 24 hours. So what is behind this new revelation?
Researchers think that the extract basically forces these harmful cells to “commit suicide” or what’s referred to as apoptosis. Apoptosis is a kind of programmed death that occurs with the cells when they are growing or developing and something goes wrong with the process. When an individual is inflicted with leukemia this means that the disease and other cancers have somehow blocked the cell signaling pathway which enables bad cells to die off. Apoptosis is essentially how the body keeps cancers and other illnesses from affecting the body.
How Can Grape Seeds Help?
The study reveals that grape seed extract is able to activate a protein known as JNK that helps to regulate the apoptotic highway and allows any damaged cells within the body to commit suicide. Grape seed extract has been studied by numerous researchers after it was discovered that this natural substance could benefit activity in breast, skin, lung, and prostate cancer patients. However, before this study, no one had tested the extract on hematological cancers.
“What everyone seeks is an agent that has an effect on cancer cells but leaves normal cells alone, and this shows that grape seed extract fits into this category,” explains the study’s author, Xianglin Shi, Ph.D. Shi emphasizes that this research is still in its earliest stages. Although, it is promising since hematological cancers such as leukemia, are the fourth leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States.
Hi,
My sister is 38 years old and she has bumps coming out on her skin, her skin itches all the time, she feels very tired and experiences body pains, her feet gets swollen and the soles of her feet often hurt as well. Her doctors ordered a CBC which revealed that she is not producing sufficient white blood cells.
Can you tell me what might be her problem as she is also overweight and she often feels unwell and doctors are unable to diagnose her to administer the right treatment.
Unfortuneately, I cannot tell what her problem is. All I can suggest is that you work closely with the doctors. You can always bring in research and ideas that you find to try and suggest possibilities to the doctors.
We are lawyers and are not able to offer anything like a diagnosis for you.
My husband was in the Marines in the middle 70s and stationed at Camp Lejeune, NC. In 2003 he was diagnosed with CML (chronic myelogenous (?) leukemia. There is a study being done now with Marines and their families stationed at Lejeune who have had several health issues due to a benzene leak at a dry cleaners on base. I have been trying to find an attorney who is handling these cases in Alabama. Anyone have any info? Thanks
Nice finding by Kentucky University.