PURPOSE Chemotherapies for breast cancer generally have strong cellular cytotoxicity and severe side effects. Thus, significant emphasis has been placed on combinations of naturally occurring chemopreventive agents. Silibinin is a major bioactive flavonolignan extracted from milk thistle with chemopreventive activity in various organs including the skin, prostate, and breast. However, the mecha...

Pyrazinamide (PZA) is widely used in combination with other drugs in chemotherapy for tuberculosis. However, the dose-related liver injury is the main adverse effect of PZA and its metabolite [pyrazinoic acid (PA)]. Silibinin is the main flavonoid extracted from milk thistle (Silybum marianum), and it displays hepatoprotective properties. This study investigates the pharmacokinetics of PZA and ...

Silibinin is known to have hepatoprotective, anti-carcinogenic and anti-inflammatory effects. However, roles of silibinin in the immediate-type allergic reactions (anaphylaxis) have not fully been investigated. In the present study, we have demonstrated that silibinin attenuated mast cell-mediated anaphylaxis-like reactions involved in allergic diseases. Oral administration of silibinin inhibit...

Silibinin is the main biologically active flavonolignan extracted from the seeds and fruits of milk thistle and has potential efficacy in the treatment of liver disease. The aim of the present study was to examine the hepatobiliary excretion of silibinin and its effect on dimethylnitrosamine (DMN)-induced liver cirrhosis. The experiments were divided into five groups: 10, 30, and 50 mg/kg silib...

Silibinin has been reported to be a promising compound for hepatitis C treatment of nonresponders to standard treatment. Although administered silibinin is well tolerated, increased serum bilirubin levels have been observed during high-dose i.v. silibinin therapy. The mechanism of silibinin-induced hyperbilirubinemia in humans, however, has not been identified so far. The aim of this study was ...

Silibinin, a major bioactive flavonolignan in Silybum marianum, has received considerable attention in view of its anticarcinogenic activity. The present study examines its anticancer potential against 7, 12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene (DMBA) and 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) induced skin cancer. Male LACA mice were randomly segregated into 4 groups: Control, DMBA/TPA, Silibinin and ...

Silibinin, derived from the milk thistle plant (Silybum marianum), has anticancer and chemopreventive properties. Silibinin has been reported to inhibit the growth of various types of cancer cells. However, the mechanisms by which silibinin exerts an anticancer effect are poorly defined. The present study aimed to investigate whether silibinin-induced cell death might be attributed to autophagy...

Silibinin, a flavonolignan from milk thistle, has intestinal cancer chemopreventive efficacy in rodents. It is a strong antioxidant and modulates the insulin-like growth factor (IGF) system by increasing circulating levels of IGF-binding protein 3 (IGFBP-3) and decreasing levels of IGF-I. Here, the hypothesis was tested that administration of oral silibinin generates agent levels in human blood...

Several studies have identified silibinin as an anticarcinogenic agent. Recently, we showed that silibinin inhibits cell growth via G1 arrest, leading to differentiation of androgen-dependent human prostate carcinoma LNCaP cells (X. Zi and R. Agarwal, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 96: 7490-7495,1999). Here, we extend this study to assess the effect of silibinin on total retinoblastoma protein (Rb...

Polyphenolic antioxidants are being identified as cancer preventive agents. Recent studies in our laboratory have identified and defined the cancer preventive and anticarcinogenic potential of a polyphenolic flavonoid antioxidant, silymarin (isolated from milk thistle). More recent studies by us found that these effects of silymarin are due to the major active constituent, silibinin, present th...