Garlic (Allium sativum ) is one of the most commonly used household ingredients known for adding a unique aroma and enhancing the taste of the food. It belongs to the "Amaryllidaceae " family which includes other vegetables such as onions, scallions, shallots, leeks and chives.
Garlic is known to be rich in compounds such as S-alkyl cysteine, diallyl- disulfide, allicin and flavonoids which show anti-cancer effects and have the potential to reduce the risks of carcinogenesis in breast cancer, pancreatic cancer and prostate cancer.
The pungent taste of garlic offers many pharmacological properties such as antimicrobial, anticancer, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties which make a big way for effective cancer treatment.
Garlic (Allium sativum ) is one of the most commonly used household ingredients known for adding a unique aroma and enhancing the taste of the food. It belongs to the "Amaryllidaceae " family which includes other vegetables such as onions, scallions, shallots, leeks and chives.
Garlic is known to be rich in compounds such as S-alkyl cysteine, diallyl- disulfide, allicin and flavonoids which show anti-cancer effects and have the potential to reduce the risks of carcinogenesis in breast cancer, pancreatic cancer and prostate cancer.
The pungent taste of garlic offers many pharmacological properties such as antimicrobial, anticancer, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties which make a big way for effective cancer treatment.
Allicin is considered to be one of the sulphur-containing compounds known for contributing flavour, odour and pharmacological properties to garlic (Allium sativum). It has been observed that by chewing the bulb of garlic, the enzyme alliinase gets activated which converts the amino acid allin to allicin.
Mechanisms of Garlic
Garlic possesses anti-oxidative and free radical scavenging properties that manage various mechanisms such as cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, proliferation and redox homeostasis.
(1.) Cell-cycle arrest
The cell cycle plays a significant role in cancer by maintaining the proliferation of cells. Garlic contains a variety of organic- sulphur-containing compounds such as S- allyl mercapto cysteine (SAMC), Diallyl- disulfide (DADS), Diallyl- trisulfide (DATS) and allicin which can regulate the cell cycle.
Diallyl - disulfide (DADS) and Diallyl - trisulfide (DATS) can activate the p53/p 21 pathway and Diallyl - disulfide (DADS) can inhibit the expression of the cyclin B1, cdc2 and CDC 25c proteins which lead to the G2/M phase arrest in tumor cells.
S- allyl mercaptocysteine (SAMC ) and Diallyl - disulfide (DADS) inhibits the polymerization of tubulin which could affect the function of the spindle resulting in mitotic arrest.
(2) Apoptosis
Apoptosis commonly known as programmed cell death is a genetically regulated process which prevents the formation of pro-tumour cells.
DADS (Diallyl - disulfide ), DATS (Diallyl-trisulfide ), SAMC (S-allyl mercapto cysteine ) and allicin activate the p53 pathway which results in the decreased expression of BCL-2 which regulates apoptosis and leads to the increased expression of Bax (main regulator of the intrinsic pathway of apoptosis ).
SAMC (S- allyl mercaptocysteine ) and DATS (Diallyl-trisulfide ) activate the three crucial mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) which include ERK, JNK and p38.
Diallyl - trisulfide (DATS) has the potential to stimulate the level of glycogen synthase kinase 3B which increases the digestion of beta-catenin. It could be interpreted that the wnt/B catenin pathway stops the formation of pro-tumour cells.
(3) Alters redox homeostasis
Redox homeostasis plays a vital role in cancer treatment by preventing oxidative stress and developing a complete defence system. Diallyl - trisulfide (DATS) increases reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and further on it activates the adenylate-activated protein kinases (AMPK) pathway.
Allicin on the other hand is involved in reducing the phosphorylated signal transducer and activator of transcription -3 (STAT- 3) to inhibit the STAT- 3 pathway and activates NrF 2 which induces translocation to the nucleus.
(4) Inhibits Cell - Proliferation
Cell proliferation is one of the integral aspects of cancer development and Matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) have a central role to play in tumour growth and metastasis of cancer. It degrades the components of the extracellular matrix, enhances angiogenesis and leads to cell migration in breast cancer and prostate cancer.
DADS (Diallyl - disulfide) inhibits matrix metalloproteinases such as MMP- 2 and MMP-9. It also inhibits tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases - 1 (TIMP -1), (TIMP -2) and p13K/AKT pathways which inhibits cell metastasis.
Garlic in Breast Cancer Treatment
Garlic has enormous potential to treat several kinds of cancer such as prostate, lung, stomach, and colon as well as melanoma and acute myeloid leukaemia.
The versatility of garlic to treat breast cancer is unavoidable, it has a lot to offer for effective cancer treatment and research for a variety of reasons :
1. Induces Apoptosis
It's been observed that garlic and its components could reduce the risks of breast cancer by inhibiting proliferation, reducing migration and invasiveness, which eventually lead to apoptosis of breast cancer cells.
Ajoene can interfere with protein folding in triple-negative (ER/PR/HER2) breast cancer cells which leads to the apoptosis of breast cancer cells.
2. Suppresses Angiogenesis
Garlic is known for suppressing angiogenesis by decreasing DNA strand breakage, inhibiting DNA and RNA synthesis, and protein folding and retards the growth of breast cancer cells by inducing apoptosis.
(3.) Reduces clearance of drugs
Garlic is known for reducing the clearance of chemotherapy drugs such as Taxotere by interfering with the activities of platinum-based chemotherapy drugs such as Cisplatin.
Another compound present in garlic is 'Enterolactone' which increases the sensitivity of breast cancer cells to radiation and eventually improves the treatment of radiotherapy.
Apigenin is known for inhibiting the growth of the patient-derived triple-negative organoids and stimulating triple-negative cells to adriamycin chemotherapy.
Dosage
It's been recommended to consume about 2-5 g of raw garlic and 0.4 g to 1.2 g of garlic powder should be included in the diet.
