Abstract
Garlic [Allium sativum] is among the oldest of all cultivated plants. It has been used as a medicinal agent for thousands of years. It is a remarkable plant, which has multiple beneficial effects such as antimicrobial, antithrombotic, hypolipidemic, antiarthritic, hypoglycemic and antitumor activity. In this review, we will discuss particularly the largely preclinical use of this agent in the treatment and prevention of cancer. A number of studies have demonstrated the chemopreventive activity of garlic by using different garlic preparations including fresh garlic extract, aged garlic, garlic oil and a number of organosulfur compounds derived from garlic. The chemopreventive activity has been attributed to the presence of organosulfur compounds in garlic. How this is achieved is not fully understood, but several modes of action have been proposed. These include its effect on drug metabolizing enzymes, antioxidant properties and tumor growth inhibition. Most of these studies were carried out in the animal models. Also, recent research has focused on the antimutagenic activity of garlic. Recently, it has been observed that aged garlic extract, but not the fresh garlic extract, exhibited radical scavenging activity. The two major compounds in aged garlic, S-allylcysteine and S-allylmercapto-L-cysteine, had the highest radical scavenging activity. In addition, some organosulfur compounds derived from garlic, including S-allylcysteine, have been found to retard the growth of chemically induced and transplantable tumors in several animal models. Therefore, the consumption of garlic may provide some kind of protection from cancer development.
Keywords: allylmercapto-l-cysteine, anti-cancer agents, garlic, allium sativum
Current Cancer Drug Targets
Title: Garlic [Allium sativum]: A Review of its Potential Use as an Anti-Cancer Agent
Volume: 3 Issue: 1
Author(s): Martha Thomson and Muslim Ali
Affiliation:
Keywords: allylmercapto-l-cysteine, anti-cancer agents, garlic, allium sativum
Abstract: Garlic [Allium sativum] is among the oldest of all cultivated plants. It has been used as a medicinal agent for thousands of years. It is a remarkable plant, which has multiple beneficial effects such as antimicrobial, antithrombotic, hypolipidemic, antiarthritic, hypoglycemic and antitumor activity. In this review, we will discuss particularly the largely preclinical use of this agent in the treatment and prevention of cancer. A number of studies have demonstrated the chemopreventive activity of garlic by using different garlic preparations including fresh garlic extract, aged garlic, garlic oil and a number of organosulfur compounds derived from garlic. The chemopreventive activity has been attributed to the presence of organosulfur compounds in garlic. How this is achieved is not fully understood, but several modes of action have been proposed. These include its effect on drug metabolizing enzymes, antioxidant properties and tumor growth inhibition. Most of these studies were carried out in the animal models. Also, recent research has focused on the antimutagenic activity of garlic. Recently, it has been observed that aged garlic extract, but not the fresh garlic extract, exhibited radical scavenging activity. The two major compounds in aged garlic, S-allylcysteine and S-allylmercapto-L-cysteine, had the highest radical scavenging activity. In addition, some organosulfur compounds derived from garlic, including S-allylcysteine, have been found to retard the growth of chemically induced and transplantable tumors in several animal models. Therefore, the consumption of garlic may provide some kind of protection from cancer development.
Export Options
About this article
Cite this article as:
Thomson Martha and Ali Muslim, Garlic [Allium sativum]: A Review of its Potential Use as an Anti-Cancer Agent, Current Cancer Drug Targets 2003; 3 (1) . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/1568009033333736
DOI https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/1568009033333736 |
Print ISSN 1568-0096 |
Publisher Name Bentham Science Publisher |
Online ISSN 1873-5576 |
Call for Papers in Thematic Issues
Advances in Cancer Biomarkers and Potential Drug Targets: From Diagnosis to Therapy
Cancer biomarkers play a crucial role in the diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of cancer. They provide valuable information for cancer detection, risk assessment, treatment selection, and monitoring response to therapy. With advancements in molecular biology and high-throughput technologies, there has been an increasing interest in identifying and characterizing cancer biomarkers ...read more
Novel Therapeutic Approaches to Target Drug Resistant Tumors
With the development of disciplines such as chemical biology and molecular biology, the genes or proteins closely related to tumor occurrence and development have gradually become clear. Targeted therapies targeting these genes or proteins provide more effective methods for tumor treatment. Tumor targeted drugs generally only act on specific targets ...read more
ROLE OF IMMUNE AND GENOTOXIC RESPONSE BIOMARKERS IN TUMOR MICROENVIRONMENT IN CANCER DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT
Biological biomarkers have been used in medical research as an indicator of a normal or abnormal process inside the body, or of a disease. Nowadays, various researchers are in process to explore and investigate the biological markers for the early assessment of cancer. DNA Damage response (DDR) pathways and immune ...read more
Targeting the battlefield between host and tumor: basic research and clinical practice on reshaping tumor immune microenvironment
Immune system protects host against malignant tumors through effector cells and molecules. Cancer development and its response to therapy are regulated by inflammation, which either promotes or suppresses cancer progression. Chronic inflammation facilitates cancer progression and treatment resistance, whereas induction of acute inflammatory reactions often lead to anti-cancer immune responses. ...read more
- Author Guidelines
- Graphical Abstracts
- Fabricating and Stating False Information
- Research Misconduct
- Post Publication Discussions and Corrections
- Publishing Ethics and Rectitude
- Increase Visibility of Your Article
- Archiving Policies
- Peer Review Workflow
- Order Your Article Before Print
- Promote Your Article
- Manuscript Transfer Facility
- Editorial Policies
- Allegations from Whistleblowers
Related Articles
-
Recent Progress in Predicting Posttranslational Modification Sites in Proteins
Current Topics in Medicinal Chemistry Small Molecules in Cancer Therapy: Cytotoxics and Molecularly Targeted Agents
Current Signal Transduction Therapy Applications of Computed Tomography, Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy for Planning External Beam Radiotherapy
Current Medical Imaging Recent Advances on Prediction of Human Papillomaviruses Risk Types
Current Drug Metabolism Non-viral Delivery Systems for the Application in p53 Cancer Gene Therapy
Current Medicinal Chemistry Anticancer and Cytotoxic Activities of [Cu(C6H16N2O2)2][Ni(CN)4] and [Cu(C6H16N2O2)Pd(CN)4] Cyanidometallate Compounds on HT29, HeLa, C6 and Vero Cell Lines
Anti-Cancer Agents in Medicinal Chemistry PET Imaging with [<sup>68</sup>Ga]NOTA-RGD for Prostate Cancer: A Comparative Study with [<sup>18</sup>F]Fluorodeoxyglucose and [<sup>18</sup>F]Fluoroethylcholine
Current Cancer Drug Targets Withdrawal Notice: Application of Nanomaterials in Development of Electrochemical Sensors and Drug Delivery Systems for Anticancer Drugs
Current Drug Delivery Structure-Activity Relationship Analyses of Glycyrrhetinic Acid Derivatives as Anticancer Agents
Mini-Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry Lipid-Based Drug Delivery Systems for Cancer Treatment
Current Drug Targets Modulation of Angiogenesis for Cancer Prevention: Strategies Based On Antioxidants and Copper Deficiency
Current Pharmaceutical Design In Vitro Synergistic Interaction Between Amide Piplartine and Antimicrobial Peptide Dermaseptin Against Schistosoma mansoni Schistosomula and Adult Worms
Current Medicinal Chemistry Targeting 5-Lipoxygenase Signaling Pathways to Reverse Drug Resistance in Cancer
Letters in Drug Design & Discovery Recent Patents Relating to siRNAs and Therapeutic Strategies for Genetic Diseases
Recent Patents on DNA & Gene Sequences Chemotherapeutic Strategies Against Trypanosoma brucei: Drug Targets vs. Drug Targeting
Current Pharmaceutical Design Discovery of Potent Bruton’s Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors Using Ligand Based Modeling
Anti-Cancer Agents in Medicinal Chemistry From Single- to Multi-Target Drugs in Cancer Therapy: When Aspecificity Becomes an Advantage
Current Medicinal Chemistry Regulation of HIF-1α at the Transcriptional Level
Current Pharmaceutical Design The Human OncoBiome Database: A Database of Cancer Microbiome Datasets
Current Bioinformatics Angiotensin Converting Enzyme Inhibitory Peptides Derived from Food Proteins: Biochemistry, Bioactivity and Production
Current Pharmaceutical Design