Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) was first introduced to Jamaica in 1782 after being taken from a captured French ship destined for Martinique. While its ripened fruit has long been a favorite sweet treat among Jamaicans, it is not widely known as a medicinal plant. However, a recent publication in the prestigious Nature group of journals, Scientific Reports, has provided new evidence that the bark from the Jackfruit tree may be used in the treatment and prevention of colon cancer. The study carried out by the UWI-Mona PhD candidate Isaac Morrison, working with international collaborators from the USA (University of Massachusetts, Amherst: Prof Guodong Zhang and his team) and the UK (Royal Botanic Gardens: Moses K. Langat; and Kingston University: James Barker) was entitled, “Potential chemopreventive, anticancer and anti-inflammatory properties of a refined artocarpin-rich wood extract of Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam”. It demonstrated that artocarpin, a flavonoid the researchers isolated from Jackfruit wood, could suppress the growth of human colon cancer cells.

In the study, when the jackfruit extract containing high levels of artocarpin was fed to colon-cancer induced mice as part of their daily diet, the number of tumours within the colon was suppressed. This reduction was accompanied by the attenuation of gene expression of key pro-inflammatory cytokines and pro-tumourigenic markers, viewed as the underlying mechanism for effectivity. The jackfruit extract was also able to repress enzymes involved in the formation of tumours in the colon, indicating a role in cancer prevention. Working together, the researchers demonstrated that artocarpin holds much promise in the treatment and prevention of colon cancer. The study further highlights the importance of natural products in the arsenal for the fight against cancer. This international collaborative study was led by Prof Rupika Delgoda at the Natural Products Institute, with UWI collaborator, Dr Roy Porter of the Department of Chemistry, with funding support from UWI Development Fund (UWIDEF), Caribbean Public Health Agency, National Health Fund, National Commission for Science and Technology and the  University of the West Indies Graduate Studies & Research.

To read the article: Morrison I., Zhang J., Lin J., Murray J, Porter R., Langat M., Sadgrovem N., Barker J., Zhang G., & Delgoda R. Potential chemopreventive,anticancer and anti‑inflammatory properties of a refined artocarpin‑rich wood extract of Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam. Scientific Reports, 2021 March 25; https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-86040-5

To find more about research at the Natural Products Institute:  https://www.mona.uwi.edu/npi/