(AP)
While celery and carrots are healthy additions to a person’s diet, they also may help in the prevention of colon cancer, the Daily Mail reported.
Research published in BMC Gastroenterology has revealed that an antioxidant found in fruit and vegetables called luteolin is capable of blocking cell signal pathways that are needed for colon cancer growth.
However more research is needed in order to possibly develop luteolin into an anti-cancer agent.
'Our study, showing that luteolin interferes with cell signaling in colon cancer cells, is a step forward in understanding how this flavonoid works,” Professor Jung Han Yoon Park, of Korea's Hallym University said.
While previous research has shown luteolin might be a cancer preventing agent, this research is the first to show that luteolin inhibits cell signaling pathways IGF and PI3K.
Colon cancer cells typically have elevated levels of IGF-II, which researchers believe leads to rapid cell division. This then leads to the spread of cancer.
Colon cancer is currently the second biggest cause of cancer-related death in the West.
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