Resveratrol found to be essential element in the fight against prostate cancer

Resveratrol found to be essential element in the fight against prostate cancer


(NaturalNews) It is estimated that one in five men will be diagnosed
with prostate cancer at some point in their lifetime. Our body normally
has a sophisticated array of mechanisms available to fight the aberrant
growth of cancerous cells, including slow-growing prostate tumors. Many
men slowly lose the ability to fight cancer cell growth during aging, as
decades of poor diet, lack of physical activity and exposure to
environmental toxins combine to accelerate the aging process, and
genetic replication becomes less efficient leading to mutations and
cancer.

Nutrition researchers have uncovered a handful of natural
substances that have the ability to assist human metabolic functions
and can help to thwart cancerous cell growth. Resveratrol is one such
compound that helps to protect plants from the harsh environment and has
been shown to lower the risk of cardiovascular disease and many forms
of cancer as well.

Resveratrol alters gene expression to protect against cancerous tumor formation and progression

A research team from the University of Missouri, publishing in the journal Cancer Science,
has discovered that resveratrol can make prostate tumor cells more
susceptible to apoptosis (natural cell death), increasing the chances of
a full recovery from all types of prostate cancer, including aggressive
tumors. The scientists determined that prostate tumor cells contain
very low levels of two proteins, perforin and granzyme B, which function
together to kill cancerous cells.

Both of the identified proteins must be genetically 'expressed' in order to kill the prostate cancer
cells through the process of apoptosis. In more aggressive forms of the
disease, the two proteins are inactive or have become negatively
expressed to allow tumor development and growth. Researchers introduced resveratrol
into the prostate cancer tumors and found that the expression of the
proteins became highly expressed. The researchers determined that 97
percent of the tumor cells died after direct exposure to resveratrol.

The study author, Dr. Michael Nicholl concluded "It
is critical that both proteins, perforin and granzyme B, are present in
order to kill the tumor cells, and we found that the resveratrol helped
to increase their activity in prostate tumor cells." In a manner
similar to vitamin D and curcumin, resveratrol functions by altering
gene expression to help combat cancerous growths. Nutrition experts
recommend supplementing with 50 to 400 mg per day of a standardized
resveratrol compound to fight prostate cancer and many other deadly
forms of the disease.

Source:-
http://www.naturalnews.com/038120_resveratrol_prostate_cancer_nutrients.html