Active component of grape seed extract effective against prostate cancer cells

Dec. 4 (UPI) -- The active component in grape seed extract, called B2G2, has been shown to kill cancerous prostate cells, while leaving healthy cells unharmed.

Researchers at the University of Colorado have been experimenting with the anti-cancer activity of grape seed extract for the past decade. Previous studies have shown grape seed to be effective in combating cancer cells, but the group recently pinpointed B2G2 as the active component behind this process.

"We've shown similar anti-cancer activity in the past with grape seed extract (GSE), but now we know B2G2 is its most biologically active ingredient which can be synthesized in quantities that will allow us to study the detailed death mechanism in cancer cells," says Alpna Tyagi, PhD student at the University of Colorado.

The process to extract B2G2 from the grape seed extract is very expensive and has been the limiting factor with Tyagi's research. So instead of extracting it they decided to synthesize B2G2 in a laboratory setting. Apart from identifying B2G2's beneficial properties, the study also found a inexpensive and quick method to synthesize it.

"Our goal all along has been a clinical trial of the biologically active compounds from GSE against human cancer. But it's difficult to earn FDA approval for a trial in which we don't know the mechanisms and possible effects of all active components. Therefore, isolating and synthesizing B2G2 is an important step because now we have the ability to conduct more experiments with the pure compound," said Tyagi.

[University of Colorado]