TUESDAY, Oct. 11 (HealthDay News) -- For individuals at normal risk for colon cancer, ginger extract may decrease certain markers of colon inflammation, including prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and 5-, 12-, and 15-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (5-, 12-, and 15-HETE), when the eicosanoids are normalized to free arachidonic acid, according to a study published online Oct. 11 in Cancer Prevention Research.
Suzanna M. Zick, N.D., M.P.H., from the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor, and colleagues investigated whether 2.0 g/day of ginger could lower the levels of PGE2, 13-hydroxyoctadecadienoic acids, and 5-, 12-, and 15-HETE in the colon mucosa of healthy volunteers. A total of 30 individuals were randomized to receive either ginger or placebo for 28 days. Colon biopsies were obtained using flexible sigmoidoscopy at baseline and day 28. The eicosanoid levels in the colon biopsies were determined by liquid chromatography mass spectrometry, and expressed per protein or per free arachidonic acid.
The investigators found that, when eicosanoids were normalized to protein, there were no significant differences in the mean percent change between baseline and day 28 for any of the eicosanoids. However, when they were normalized to free arachidonic acids, there was a significant decrease in mean percent changes in PGE2 (P = 0.05) and 5-HETE (P = 0.04), and a trend toward significant decrease in 12-HETE (P = 0.09) and 15-HETE (P = 0.06). Total adverse events were not different between the groups.
"It seems that ginger has the potential to decrease eicosanoid levels, perhaps by inhibiting their synthesis from arachidonic acid. Ginger also seemed to be tolerable and safe," the authors write.
Abstract
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