The bioactive anthocyanins present in tart cherries, Prunus cerasus L. (Rosaceae) cv. Balaton, are cyanidin 3-glucosylrutinoside (1), cyanidin 3-rutinoside (2), and cyanidin 3-glucoside (3). Cyanidin (4) is the major anthocyanidin in tart cherries. In our continued evaluation of the in vivo and in vitro efficacy of these anthocyanins to prevent inflammation and colon cancer, we have added these compounds to McCoy's 5A medium in an effort to identify their degradation products during in vitro cell culture studies. This resulted in the isolation and characterization of protocatechuic acid (5), the predominant degradation product. In addition, 2,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid (6) and 2,4,6-trihydroxybenzoic acid (7) were identified as degradation products. However, these degradation products were not quantified. Compounds 5-7 were also identified as degradation products when anthocyanins were subjected to varying pH and thermal conditions. In cyclooxygenase (COX)-I and -II enzyme inhibitory assays, compounds 5-7 did not show significant activities when compared to the NSAIDs Naproxen, Celebrex, and Vioxx, or Ibuprofen, at 50 microM concentrations. However, at a test concentration of 50 microM, the antioxidant activity of protocatechuic acid (5) was comparable to those of the commercial antioxidants tert-butylhydroquinone (TBHQ), butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), and butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), and superior to that of vitamin E at 10 microM concentrations.
Anthocyanins, which are bioactive phytochemicals, are widely distributed in plants and especially enriched in tart cherries. Based on previous observations that tart cherry anthocyanins and their respective aglycone, cyanidin, can inhibit cyclooxygenase enzymes, we conducted experiments to test the potential of anthocyanins to inhibit intestinal tumor development in Apc(Min) mice and growth of human colon cancer cell lines. Mice consuming the cherry diet, anthocyanins, or cyanidin had significantly fewer and smaller cecal adenomas than mice consuming the control diet or sulindac. Colonic tumor numbers and volume were not significantly influenced by treatment. Anthocyanins and cyanidin also reduced cell growth of human colon cancer cell lines HT 29 and HCT 116. The IC(50) of anthocyanins and cyanidin was 780 and 63 microM for HT 29 cells, respectively and 285 and 85 microM for HCT 116 cells, respectively. These results suggest that tart cherry anthocyanins and cyanidin may reduce the risk of colon cancer.
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