Project executive Shahriar Shakeri told Mehr News that Gastric cancer is the third most common cause of cancer-related death among men in the world. The related risk factors that make a person more likely to develop stomach cancer include tobacco use, diet, obesity, family history, ethnicity and the place a person lives.
A diet high in smoked, pickled, or salty foods is one of the main causes which play a role in raising the risk of stomach cancer, Shakeri said.
Chemotherapy treats many types of cancer effectively. But like other treatments, it often causes side effects, Shakeri underlined, pointing to using some essential oils or plant extracts with antioxidant and anti-cancer effects to prevent and treat most diseases including cancer.
"Carvacrol, a monoterpene phenol, present as an active constituent of the volatile oil in oregano, thyme and savory, has been shown to have anti-proliferative effects on various human cancer cell lines," the researcher said.
Pointing to Carvacrol as an effective anticancer, Shekri said, however, it has low solubility.
In the new study, Shekeri said, the team aims at using biopolymer nanoparticles which can encapsulate Carvacrol and control its release to increase its solubility and anti-cancer effect on gastric cancer cells.
Shakeri said the results of the study shows that the biopolymer nanoparticles are capable of trapping carvacrol to significantly increase anti-cancer effects of trapped carvacrol.
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