This technology provides a pharmaceutical composition for the prevention and treatment of prostate cancer, as well as a health functional food for its prevention and improvement, using extracts from brown algae native to the rocky coasts of the West, South, and Jeju regions of Korea as an active ingredient.
While the incidence of prostate cancer is steadily increasing due to Westernized diets and an aging population, conventional treatments such as androgen deprivation, radiation, and surgery often come with side effects, and androgen-independent prostate cancer is particularly difficult to treat. Although brown algae are known to contain various bioactive substances, research into their anticancer effects has been insufficient, preventing their use as natural apoptosis-inducing agents.
This technology utilizes the ability of brown algae extract to increase reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in human prostate cancer cell lines and induce cancer cell apoptosis via the MAPK pathway by increasing the phosphorylation of ERK and p38 proteins in a concentration-dependent manner. The extract can be obtained using lower alcohols such as methanol, dried, and then formulated by dissolving it in 1,3-butylene glycol. It can be applied to the development of adjuvant therapies for hormone-refractory prostate cancer, prostate health supplements for middle-aged men, and seaweed-derived anticancer candidates, allowing coastal seaweed resources to be developed into natural anticancer agents that target even androgen-independent prostate cancer.
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