Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Bitter Melon: Antagonist to Cancer

Pharmaceutical Research volume 27, pages 1049–1053 (2010)Cite this article

ABSTRACT

The incidence of cancer is increasing worldwide, in spite of substantial progress in the development of anti-cancer therapies. One approach to control cancer could be its prevention by diet, which inhibits one or more neoplastic events and reduces cancer risk. Dietary compounds offer great potential in the fight against cancer by inhibiting the carcinogenesis process through the regulation of cell homeostasis and cell-death machineries. For centuries, Ayurveda (Indian traditional medicine) has recommended the use of bitter melon (Momordica charantia) as a functional food to prevent and treat diabetes and associated complications. It is noteworthy to mention that bitter melon extract has no-to-low side effects in animals as well as in humans. The anti-tumor activity of bitter melon has recently begun to emerge. This review focuses on recent advancements in cancer chemopreventive and anti-cancer efficacy of bitter melon and its active constituents. Several groups of investigators have reported that treatment of bitter-melon-related products in a number of cancer cell lines induces cell cycle arrest and apoptosis without affecting normal cell growth. Therefore, the effect of bitter melon should be beneficial for health, and use of the non-modified dietary product is cost effective.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Fig. 1

REFERENCES

  1. Surh YJ. Cancer chemoprevention with dietary phytochemicals. Nat Rev Cancer. 2003;3:768–80.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Ramos S. Cancer chemoprevention and chemotherapy: dietary polyphenols and signalling pathways. Mol Nutr Food Res. 2008;52:507–26.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Kaur M, Agarwal C, Agarwal R. Anticancer and cancer chemopreventive potential of grape seed extract and other grape-based products. J Nutr. 2009;139:1806S–12S.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Kushi LH, Byers T, Doyle C, Bandera EV, McCullough M, Gansler T, et al. Guidelines on nutrition and physical activity for cancer prevention: reducing the risk of cancer with healthy food choices and physical activity. CA Cancer J Clin. 2006;56:254–81.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Nerurkar PV, Lee YK, Linden EH, Lim S, Pearson L, Frank J, et al. Lipid lowering effects of Momordica charantia (Bitter Melon) in HIV-1-protease inhibitor-treated human hepatoma cells, HepG2. Br J Pharmacol. 2006;148:1156–64.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Nerurkar PV, Lee YK, Motosue M, Adeli K, Nerurkar VR. Momordica charantia (bitter melon) reduces plasma apolipoprotein B-100 and increases hepatic insulin receptor substrate and phosphoinositide-3 kinase interactions. Br J Nutr. 2008;100:751–9.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Ahmed I, Adeghate E, Sharma AK, Pallot DJ, Singh J. Effects of Momordica charantia fruit juice on islet morphology in the pancreas of the streptozotocin-diabetic rat. Diabetes Res Clin Pract. 1998;40:145–51.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Hanahan D, Weinberg RA. The hallmarks of cancer. Cell 2000;100:57–70.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Jilka C, Strifler B, Fortner GW, Hays EF, Takemoto DJ. In vivo antitumor activity of the bitter melon (Momordica charantia). Cancer Res. 1983;43:5151–5.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Ray R, Raychoudhuri A, Steele R, Nerurkar P. Bitter melon (Momordica charantia) extract inhibits breast cancer cell proliferation by modulating cell cycle regulatory genes and promotes apoptosis. Cancer Res. 2010;70:1925–31.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Grover JK, Yadav SP. Pharmacological actions and potential uses of Momordica charantia: a review. J Ethnopharmacol. 2004;93:123–32.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Nakamura S, Murukami T, Nakamura J, Kobayashi H, Matsuda H, Yoshikawa M. Structures of new cucurbitane-type triterpenes and glycosides, karavilagenins and karavilosides, from the dried fruit of momordica charantia L. in Sri Lanka. Chem Pharm Bull. 2006;54:1545–50.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Lee-Huang S, Huang PL, Sun Y, Chen HC, Kung HF, Huang PL, et al. Inhibition of MDA-MB-231 human breast tumor xenografts and HER2 expression by anti-tumor agents GAP31 and MAP30. Anticancer Res. 2000;20:653–9.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Xiong SD, Yu K, Liu XH, et al. Ribosome-inactivating proteins isolated from dietary bitter melon induce apoptosis and inhibit histone deacetylase-1 selectively in premalignant and malignant prostate cancer cells. Int J Cancer. 2009;125:774–82.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Li M, Chen Y, Liu Z, Shen F, Bian X, Meng Y. Anti-tumor activity and immunological modification of ribosome-inactivating protein (RIP) from Momordica charantia by covalent attachment of polyethylene glycol. Acta Biochim Biophys Sin (Shanghai). 2009;41:792–9.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Kohno H, Suzuki R, Noguchi R, Hosokawa M, Miyashita K, Tanaka T. Dietary conjugated linolenic acid inhibits azoxymethane-induced colonic aberrant crypt foci in rats. Jpn J Cancer Res. 2002;93:133–42.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Nagasawa H, Watanabe K, Inatomi H. Effects of bitter melon (Momordica charantia l.) or ginger rhizome (Zingiber offifinale rosc) on spontaneous mammary tumorigenesis in SHN mice. Am J Chin Med. 2002;30:195–205.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Akihisa T, Higo N, Tokuda H, Ukiya M, Akazawa H, Tochigi Y, et al. Cucurbitane-type triterpenoids from the fruits of Momordica charantia and their cancer chemopreventive effects. J Nat Prod. 2007;70:1233–9.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Tsuzuki T, Tokuyama Y, Igarashi M, Miyazawa T. Tumor growth suppression by α-eleostearic acid, a linolenic acid isomer with a conjugated triene system, via lipid peroxidation. Carcinogenesis 2004;25:1417–25.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Kobori M, Ohnishi-Kameyama M, Akimoto Y, Yukizaki C, Yoshida M. Alpha-eleostearic acid and its dihydroxy derivative are major apoptosis-inducing components of bitter gourd. J Agric Food Chem. 2008;56:10515–20.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Grossmann ME, Mizuno NK, Dammen ML, Schuster T, Ray A, Cleary MP. Eleostearic acid inhibits breast cancer proliferation by means of an oxidation-dependent mechanism. Cancer Prev Res. 2009;2:879–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This work was supported by Doisy research fund from Saint Louis University. We thank the members of the Ray laboratory for critical reading of the manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Metabolic Disorders and Alternative Medicine, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

    Pratibha Nerurkar

  2. Department of Pathology, Saint Louis University, 1100 South Grand Boulevard, St. Louis, Missouri, 63104, USA

    Ratna B. Ray

  3. Cancer Center, Saint Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri, USA

    Ratna B. Ray

Authors
  1. Pratibha Nerurkar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Ratna B. Ray
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ratna B. Ray.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Nerurkar, P., Ray, R.B. Bitter Melon: Antagonist to Cancer. Pharm Res 27, 1049–1053 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11095-010-0057-2

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11095-010-0057-2

KEY WORDS

search

Navigation