The assessment of the biological activity of capsaicin, the compound responsible for the spicy flavor of chili pepper, produced controversial results, showing either carcinogenicity or cancer prevention. The innate immune system plays a pivotal role in cancer pathology and prevention; yet, the effect of capsaicin on natural killer (NK) cells, which function in cancer surveillance, is unclear. T...

Capsaicin, the pungent ingredient in hot pepper, activates nociceptors to produce pain and inflammation. However, prolonged exposures of capsaicin will cause desensitization to nociceptive stimuli. Hyperpolarization-activated cation currents (I(h)) contribute to the maintenance of the resting membrane potential and excitability of neurons. In the cultured dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons, we ...

Abstract Daikenchuto is a traditional Kampo medicine used to treat cold sensations and dysmotility in the abdomen. This study investigated roles of transient receptor potential ankyrin 1- reporter vanilloid 1-expressing sensory nerves daikenchuto-induced gastric mucosal blood flow by pharmacological immunohistochemical analyses using male Sprague-Dawley rats. Gastric was measured ex vivo stomac...

UNLABELLED Capsaicin, the most abundant pungent molecule produced by pepper plants, represents an important ingredient in spicy foods consumed throughout the world. Studies have shown that capsaicin can relieve inflammation and has anti-proliferative effects on various human malignancies. Cholangiocarcinoma (CC) is a cancer disease with rising incidence. The prognosis remains dismal with little...

PURPOSE Pruritus ani is a common and embarrassing proctological condition which can be very difficult to treat. We report the results of a double blind placebo controlled study of treatment with capsaicin. METHODS Firstly, a pilot open study was carried out on five patients to establish which of two doses was the most acceptable by comparing effectiveness and side effects. Secondly, a double ...

When delivered to the oral mucosa, a variety of naturally occurring chemicals such as capsaicin from red chili peppers, piperine from black pepper, and nicotine from tobacco, cause a diffuse burning sensation often referred to as irritation. The burning sensation evoked by capsaicin increases when delivered repeatedly at 1 min intervals (sensitization), but then decreases markedly following a 1...

Aberrant activation of β-catenin/TCF signaling is related to the invasiveness of pancreatic cancer. In the present study, we evaluated the effect of capsaicin on β-catenin/TCF signaling. In a concentration and time-dependent study, we observed that capsaicin treatment inhibits the activation of dishevelled (Dsh) protein DvI-1 in L3.6PL, PanC-1 and MiaPaCa-2 pancreatic cancer cells. Capsaicin tr...

PURPOSE The current study was designed to examine the antinociceptive effect of intrathecally administered capsaicin, a transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 receptor agonist, in a rat model of neuropathic pain induced by unilateral sciatic nerve chronic constriction injury. METHODS Male adult Sprague Dawley rats were randomly assigned to six groups, and all rats underwent unilateral sciat...