Ellagic Acid

Ellagic Acid
Odourless light brown, amorphous powder.

Solubility : Soluble in alkali , in pyridine, practically insoluble in ether
Physical constant : MP above 3600C Absorption max. in ethanol : 366 , 255 nm
Assay : Purity min. 90%
Category : Anticancer, In gastrointestinal disorders

Quantitative determination of ellagic acid :

• High performance liquid chromatography method :

• UV/ visible  Spectrophotometric  method :1

Quantitative determination of Ellagic acid using pyridine at 538 nm.
Ellagic acid is a naturally occurring phytonutrient, chemically belonging to the phenol compound. It is a phenolic lactone compound found in a variety of fruits and vegetables. It occurs in particularly high concentrations in hirda, behera, strawberries, raspberries, cranberries, grapes and many other berries, and in nuts such as walnuts and pecans (Daniel, E.M. et al., 1989). It is present in plants in the form of hydrolyzable tannins called ellagitannins. Ellagitannins are esters of glucose with hexahydroxydiphenic acid; when hydrolyzed, they yield ellagic acid in numerous plants such as those mentioned above.

How does Ellagic acid works?³

Healthy cells have a normal life cycle of approximately 120 days before they die. This process is called apoptosis (natural cell death). The body replaces these dying cells with healthy cells. Conversely, cancer cells do not die. They multiply by division, making 2 cancer cells, then 4, 8, 16, 32 and so on. In lab tests, Ellagic Acid caused the cancer cells to go through the normal apoptosis process without damaging healthy cells. Chemotherapy, radiation, and most conventional treatments cause the death of cancer cells and healthy cells indiscriminately, possibly destroying the immune system in the process. Ellagic Acid is clearly the sensible choice.
Ellagic acid promotes carcinogen detoxification by stimulating the activity of various isoforms of the enzyme glutathione-S- transferase in hepatoma (liver cancer).Ellagic acid slows the growth of abnormal colon cells in humans, prevents the development of cells infected with the human papilloma virus (HPV) linked to cervical cancer, and triggers apoptosis (natural death) of prostate cancer cells. This apoptotic process may also have beneficial effects on breast, lung, esophageal, and skin cancer (melanoma).Ellagic acid from raspberries causes apoptosis (normal cell death) of human cervical cancer cells (human papilloma virus), induces G1 inhibition of cancer cell division, and prevents destruction of the P53 gene by cancer cells. P53 is regarded as a safeguard against mutagenic activity (cancer causing changes) in cervical cells.
Unpublished research at the Hollings Cancer Center shows that one cup of raspberries per week will stop prostate cancer growth for a period of up to one week. Their studies reveal that Ellagic acid from red raspberries is readily absorbed through the gastrointestinal tract.

Inhibition of carcinogenesis by Ellagic acid has been demonstrated in animals with esophagus, tongue, lung, colon, liver, and skin tumors. Ellagic acid inhibits the initiation of tumors through a number of mechanisms, including inhibition of metabolic activation of carcinogenic compounds (such as polycyclic hydrocarbons, nitroso-containing chemicals or food preservatives, and aflatoxins) into forms that induce cell DNA damage.

Ellagic acid acts as a scavenger to "bind"cancer-causing chemicals, making them inactive. It inhibits the ability of other chemicals to cause mutations in bacteria. In addition, Ellagic acid from red raspberries prevents binding of carcinogens to DNA, and reduces the incidence of cancer in cultured human cells exposed to carcinogens. Ellagic acid has been shown to inhibit chemically induced cancer in the lung, liver, skin and esophagus of rodents, and TPA-induced tumor promotion in mouse skin. Ellagic acid inhibits N-nitrosomethylbenzylamine (NMBA) tumorigenesis in the esophagus of F-344 rats. Ellagic acid inhibited the development of both preneoplastic and neoplastic lesions by 25-50%. Ellagic acid is an effective inhibitor of lung and esophageal tumors in mice 4

Cancer can affect DNA by covalent bonding of the carcinogen to the DNA molecule. Ellagic acid inhibits mutagenesis and carcinogenesis by forming adducts with DNA, thus masking binding sites to be occupied by the mutagen or carcinogen.⁵ Ellagic acid reduced the number of altered foci and the incidence of hepatocellular neoplasms in rats with liver cancer induced by N-2-fluorenylacetamide.⁶

References :

• Wilson, T. C. ; Haggerman, A. E.; J Agri. Food. Chem.; 1990; 38; 1678-1683.
• The Merck index, Merck and Co. Inc.; Susan Budavari; Twelfth edition; 1996; 3591,4364,9221.
• Nixon DW. Alternative and complementary therapies in oncology care. J Clin Oncol 17(11 Suppl):35-7, 1999. Nixon DW. Prostate cancer and nutrition. JSC Med Assoc 96(2): 85-6, 2000. Nixon DW. Preventive medicine in the year 2000. Prev Med 30(1): 1-2, 2000.)
• Teel RW. Ellagic acid binding to DNA as a possible mechanism for its antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic action. Cancer Lett 30(3):329-36, 1986.
• Tanaka T et al. Inhibitory effect of ellagic acid on N-2-fluoenylacetamide- induced liver carcinogenesis in male AC1/N rats. Jpn J Cancer Res (Gann) 79:1297-1303, 1988.
• Tanaka T et al. Inhibition of 4-nitroquinoline-1-oxide-induced rat tongue carcinogenesis by the naturally occurring plant phenolics caffeic, ellagic, chlorogenic and ferulic acids. Carcinogenesis x14(7):1321-5, 1993.