Research

The therapeutic capabilities of the Philippine Narra were known since ancient times. The wood is official in the French; Portuguese; and Spanish Pharmacopoeias. Their medicinal uses have been reported. The decoction of the wood is given in dropsy and for stone in the bladder (Delgado J.J. 1892). It is given for diarrhea and dysentery after being purified by boiling (Burkill I.H. 1935). The juice of the roots is used as an application to syphilitic sores (Ridley H.N. 1897). The red latex of Narra has also been used as folk remedy for tumors and cancers, especially for the mouth (Hartwell 1971). The dried cold water extract of the leaves injected in mice significantly inhibited the growth of Ehrlich ascites carcinoma cells in mice (Endo and Miyasaki 1972).

The components responsible for the therapeutic property of the Philippine Narra are the ubiquitous isoflavones or polyphenolics: Isoliquiritigenin, pterostilben, pterocarpin, narrin, santalin, angiolensin, homopterocarpin, prunetin, formonoetin, p-hydroxyhydratropic acid, pterofuran, pterocarpol, and ß-eudesmol.

Three of the the phytochemical components of the Philippine Narra tree - ISOLIQUIRITIGENIN, PTEROSTILBEN and PTEROCARPIN - have been researched extensively for its anti-cancer properties from other plant isolates.

Many researches were done on ISOLIQUIRITIGENIN from other plant isolates:

• POTENT ANTI-TUMOR PROMOTING AGENT by S Yamamoto, E Aizu, H Jiang, T Nakadate, I Kiyoto, JC Wang and R Kato. Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan.
  
  
• INDUCE APOPTOSIS (CELL DEATH) IN HUMAN GASTRIC CANCER MGC-803 CELLS by Ma J, Fu NY, Pang DB, Wu WY, Xu AL. Department of Biochemistry, Center for Biopharmaceutical Research and State Key laboratory for Bio-control, College of Life Science, Zhongshan University, Guangzhou, P. R. China.
  
  
• INHIBIT CELL GROWTH AND INDUCE APOPTOSIS (CELL DEATH) IN B16 MELANOMA 4A5 CELLS by Iwashita K, Kobori M, Yamaki K, Tsushida T. Institute of Applied Biochemistry, University of Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan.
  
  
• INHIBIT GROWTH OF PROSTATE CANCER by Kanazawa M, Satomi Y, Mizutani Y, Ukimura O, Kawauchi A, Sakai T, Baba M, Okuyama T, Nishino H, Miki T. Department of Urology, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kawaramachi-Hirokoji, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan.
  
  
• CHEMOPREVENTIVE AGAINST COLON CANCER by Baba M, Asano R, Takigami I, Takahashi T, Ohmura M, Okada Y, Sugimoto H, Arika T, Nishino H, Okuyama T. Department of Natural Medicine and Phytochemistry, Meiji Pharmaceutical University, Kiyose, Tokyo, Japan;
  
  

Researches done by Rimando AM et al. USDA's Natural Products Utilization Research Unit, Oxford, Mississippi, on PTEROSTILBEN has found it to be CHEMOPREVENTIVE AND ANTIOXIDANT:

• PTEROSTILBEN prevented a type of cell damage that is normally induced by cancer causing agent.
  
  
• PTEROSTILBEN is equal in potency to resveratrol as a cancer-preventive agent.
  
  
• PTEROSTILBEN is shown to be toxic to human breast cancer cell line.
  
  
• PTEROSTILBEN can lower blood glucose by 42% comparable to at least one known antidiabetic agent (metformin).
  
  
• PTEROSTILBEN has a high antioxidant activity.
  
  
• PTEROSTILBEN appears to be 60 to 100 times more potent as a fungicide
  
  

Research done on PTEROCARPIN by Dr. Morrow's group, UD, Chemistry Dept. has found its potential as a therapeutic tumor suppressant and anti-HIV agent.