This paper is only available as a PDF. To read, Please Download here.
Abstract
Ayurveda, an ancient and comprehensive system of natural medicine, recommends regular
topical application to the skin of sesame oil, above all other oils, as a health-promoting
procedure. We examined the effect of sesame oil and several other vegetable oils and
their major component fatty acids on the proliferation rate of human normal and malignant
melanocytes growing at similar rates in serum-free media. We found that sesame and
safflower oils, both of which contain large amounts of linoleate in triglyceride form,
selectively inhibited malignant melanoma growth over normal melanocytes whereas coconut,
olive and mineral oils, which contain little or no linoleate as triglyceride, did
not. These oils were tested at a range of 10–300 μg/ml. We found that of the fatty
acids tested, only linoleic acid was selectively inhibitory while palmitic and oleic
were not. These fatty acids were tested in the range of 3–100 μg/ml. These results
suggest that certain vegetable oils rich in linoleic acid, such as the sesame oil,
recommended for topical use by Ayurveda, may contain selective antineoplastic properties
which are similar to those demonstrated for essential polyunsaturated fatty acids
and their metabolites. This suggests that whole vegetable oils may have potential
clinical usefulness.
To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
Purchase one-time access:
Academic & Personal: 24 hour online accessCorporate R&D Professionals: 24 hour online accessOne-time access price info
- For academic or personal research use, select 'Academic and Personal'
- For corporate R&D use, select 'Corporate R&D Professionals'
Subscribe:
Subscribe to Prostaglandins, Leukotrienes and Essential Fatty AcidsAlready a print subscriber? Claim online access
Already an online subscriber? Sign in
Register: Create an account
Institutional Access: Sign in to ScienceDirect
References
- Neoplasms of the skin and malignant melanoma.in: Epidemiology of Skin Cancer. Year Book Medical Publishers, Inc, Chicago, Ill1976
- Malignant cutaneous tumors.in: Rubenstein E Federman DD Scientific American Medicine. Scientific American Inc, New York, NY1989
- Cancer statistics, 1991.Ca-A Cancer Journal for Clinicians. 1991; 41: 19-36
- Malignant melanoma in the 1990s: the continued importance of early detection and the role of physician examination and self-examination of the skin.Ca-A Cancer Journal for Clinicians. 1991; 41: 201-226
- Studies on lymphoid activity. VI. Immunity to transplanted cancer induced by injection of olive oil.Journal of Experimental Medicine. 1922; 35: 493-507
- Effect of fatty acids on the resistance of mice to transplanted cancer.Journal of Experimental Medicine. 1924; 40: 363-373
- Resistance to spontaneous mouse cancer induced by injections of oleic acid.Journal of Experimental Medicine. 1925; 41: 347-357
- Effects of some fatty acid esters on the viability and transplantability of Ehrlich's ascites tumor.Cancer Research. 1925; 31: 501-504
- Antitumor activity of sodium linoleate.Nutrition and Cancer. 1988; 2: 107-115
- Cytotoxic effects of free fatty acids on ascites tumor cells.Journal of the National Cancer Institute. 1988; 78: 271-277
- Antitumor effect of gamma-linolenic acid on cultured human neuroblastoma cells.Prostaglandins Leukotrienes and Medicine. 1986; 23: 311-320
- Selective killing of human cancer cells by polyunsaturated fatty acids.Prostaglandins Leukotrienes and Medicine. 1985; 19: 177-186
- Some effects of the essential fatty acids, linoleic acid and alpha-linolenic acid and of their metabolites gamma-linolenic acid, arachidonic acid, eicosapentanoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, and of prostaglandins A1, and E1 on the proliferation of human osteogenic sarcoma cells in culture.Prostaglandins Leukotrienes and Medicine. 1984; 15: 15-33
- Differential killing of human carcinoma cells supplemented with n-3 and n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids.Journal of the National Cancer Institute. 1986; 77: 1053-1062
- The reversibility of cancer: evidence that malignancy in melanoma cells is gamma-linolenic acid deficiency-dependent.South African Medical Journal. 1982; 62: 505-509
- Some effects of linoleic acid and gamma-linoleic acid on the proliferation of human hepatoma cells in culture.South African Medical Journal. 1984; 65: 607-612
- The effects of essential fatty acid supplementation on the fatty acid composition of cancer cells in culture.Progress in Lipid Research. 1986; 25: 547-550
- Effects of C18 fatty acids on breast carcinoma cells in culture.Anticancer Research. 1987; 7: 215-218
- The use of sesame oil and other vegetable oils in the inhibition of human colon cancer growth in vitro.Anticancer Research. 1991; 11: 209-216
- Polyunsaturated fatty acids augment free radical generation in tumor cells in vitro.Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. 1987; 145: 15-24
- Polyunsaturated fatty acid cytotoxicity against tumor cells and its relationship to lipid peroxidation.Journal of the National Cancer Institute. 1988; 80: 188-194
- Traditional medicine and health care coverage: Reader for health administrators and practitioners.World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland1983
- Health promotion with a traditional system of natural health care: Maharishi Ayurveda.Journal of Social Behavior and Personality. 1990; 3: 1-27
- Sharma P Charaka Samhita: Text with English Translation. Chaukambha Orientalia, publisher, Varanasi, India1981 (ed and translator)
- Selective cytotoxicity of tumor cells induced by liposomes containing plant phosphatidylinositol.Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. 1983; 114: 863-871
- Selected fatty acids as possible intermediates for selective cytotoxic activity of anticancer agents involving oxygen radicals.Anticancer Research. 1985; 6: 291-296
Article Info
Publication History
Accepted:
November 13,
1991
Received:
August 13,
1991
Identification
Copyright
© 1992 Published by Elsevier Inc.
