2017, Vol. 5, Issue 3, Part B

author(s)
Antonia Kotsiou and Christine Tesseromatis

abstract
Oleocanthal, a phenolic compound in virgin olive oil, is a potential nutraceutical therapeutic for many health conditions. The Greek physician Hippocrates (460 -370 BC) mentions approximately 60 of them. Oleocanthal inhibits cyclooxygenase 1 and 2 (COX 1 & 2) enzymes in a dose-dependent manner, and mimics the anti-inflammatory action of the synthetic NSAID ibuprofen. Oleocanthal modulates Alzheimer's disease, by altering the fibrillization of tau protein and by enhancement of β-amyloid clearance from the brain. Oleocanthal induced cell death in all cancer cells by various mechanisms- inhibition of COX 2, rapamycin (mTOR), HGF-induced c-Met activation and its downstream mitogenic signaling pathways, heat-shock proteins HSP70 and HSP90. Oleocanthal provides an exceptional antioxidative activity, removing harmful oxidants from the body and preventing many diseases.