Anticancer composition

Abstract

An anticancer composition containing a flowery portion of elm tree or its extract and a leaf portion of varnish tree or its extract is safe and shows high activity.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD[0001]This invention relates to an anticancer composition characterized by containing flowery portion of elm tree or its extract and a leaf portion of varnish tree or its extract.BACKGROUND ART[0002]Studies of developing pharmaceutical compositions by the use of the component derived from plants growing in the natural world have been heretofore actively made in the art. Of the plants existing in the natural world, those taken by animals and humans as edibles are nontoxic and readily available, and are therefore especially actively studied. Heretofore, various pharmaceutical compositions have been developed, and there are a great many kinds of those compositions.[0003]Elm and vanish trees which the present inventors have specifically noted are plants abundantly growing in the natural world, and they are readily available. Heretofore, however, an elm tree has been almost put outside the range of studies for pharmaceutical materials. It is widely known that a vanish tree...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0005]The present inventors have assiduously studied and, as a result, have found that a composition containing a component derived from a flowery portion of elm tree and a component derived from a leaf portion of varnish tree has excellent anticancer activities, whereby they have completed the invention.

[0008]The composition of the invention containing a flowery portion of elm tree or its extract and a leaf portion of varnish tree or its extract shows a strong anticancer activity. Since the composition of the invention shows low toxicity, it can be used as pharmaceuticals with a potent activity at a low dose, foods and beverages.

[0026]The flowery portion of the elm trees is utilized in any form convenient for use as an anticancer composition. It is allowable, for example, to use a mixture of finely stripped or powdered flowery portion as mixed with appropriate components, or to use an extract obtained by extraction using a proper solvent. Fine stripping or powdering of the flowery portion is enabled by processing the collected flowery portion using a cutter, a stripper or a colloidal mill and is more favorably done after the flowery portion is dried. The flowery portion is usually dried until the moisture content drops below 10 wt %, preferably below 5 wt % and still more preferably below 3 wt %. Either natural drying or mechanical drying is allowable. The drying is preferably started within 30 minutes after the collection of the flowery portion.

[0027]There is no special limitation on drying temperature. Thus drying by rapid heating is possible using a pressure drum heater or electromagnetic wave. Drying using the pressure drum heater is preferably done within a range from 80 to 140° C. A drying period is usually set within two minutes, more preferably within one minute, and still more preferably within 40 to 50 seconds. Electromagnetic wave-aided drying using a microwave oven is possible, for example, at 600 W for 20 to 50 seconds. Heating and drying under such conditions can suppress or inactivate undesirable activities of enzymes contained in the flowery raw material and can prevent to a certain extent physiologically active substances from being degraded.

[0028]The flowery portion dried by the rapid heating may be used as it is or after dried further at low temperatures. The low temperature drying is preferably effected within a range from −5 to 10° C., which is effected by using a hot wind dryer such as an infrared dryer, ventilating heater or chilled dryer in a separate or combined manner. A possible case relates to, for example, infrared drying followed by chilled drying. Such low temperature drying can prevent physiologically active substances from being degraded.

Problems solved by technology

However, the other physiological activities than the above of those plants have not been investigated at all, and the pharmaceutical applicability of the combined composition of elm and vanish trees is only extremely limited.