Product Description

Anti-inflammatory Capabilities

In a study on the anti-inflammatory potential of C3G, male rats administered the anthocyanin orally in liquid form (0.9 mmol/kg) prior to chemically-induced acute inflammation showed significantly less inflammation and significantly attenuated levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (interleukin*6, interleukin-? , and tumor necrosis factor-? , and inducible nitric oxide [iNOS] expression) and nitric oxide (a free radical).*3 Based on these results, it is possible that this plant pigment may also suppress the inflammatory response in diseases marked with inflammation.

Preventing Cancer

Could the anthocyanin pigment also help prevent some types of cancer? That question was put to the test in rats first treated with a carcinogen (1,*-dimethylhydrazine) and then fed a diet containing a known environmental carcinogen (PhIP or *-amino**-methyl**-phenylimidazo[4,*-b]pyridine) that also targets the mammary gland, prostate, and large intestine in rats and causes colorectal cancer. Incidentally, the carcinogen used in the study, known as a heterocyclic amine, is the most abundant of around *0 other types found in cooked meats and fish. Both the early signs of colorectal cancers and the numbers of malignant and benign tumors that formed in the colons of rats that had the purple pigment in their diet (5% of feed for *2 weeks; a nontoxic dose based on previous carcinogenicity studies of PCC) were significantly reduced, and there were no adverse effects. The authors of the study note that extract or juices of plants that contain high amounts of anthocyanins have previously been reported to inhibit mutagenesis induced by heterocyclic amines.*4

The oxidation of fats or lipids in blood serum contributes to the condition known as atherosclerosis. When male rats were fed a diet containing a high amount of C3G (0.2% of feed for 2 weeks) in place of sucrose content in the control diet, their blood serum showed a significantly lower level of oxidation along with a significant decrease in the susceptibility of their serum lipids to undergo oxidation, yet their bodys natural antioxidants (serum levels of vitamins C and E, glutathione, and uric acid) remained unaffected. Another intriguing discovery in this study was that the rats with C3G in their feed also showed significant decreases in levels of total cholesterol—about *6% less.*5

Anti-obesity Potential

What would happen if rats were fed C3G as part of a high-fat diet? To find out, researchers in Japan compared the body weights of male mice fed a high-fat (HF) diet with another group fed the same HF diet but with the addition of purple corn color (PCC) which provided C3G (0.2% or 2 g/kg of feed). Results were also compared to 2 control groups: one fed a normal diet and one fed a normal diet with C3G. After *2 weeks, the results were obvious: mice in the PCC-HF group showed significantly less signs of developing obesity, yet exhibited no significant difference in food consumption compared to the control groups with or without the PCC in their feed. When related to the primary control group (no HF diet or PCC), the adipose tissue weights of the PCC-HF group were not significantly different. In addition, fatty tissue in HF-diet group was found to be growing in size but showed no increase in the PCC-HF group. The HF-diet group also developed a state of hyperglycemia along with an over-production of insulin. Interestingly, this was not observed in the PCC-HF group in which both pathologies were completely normalized. In conclusion, the researchers stated that their tests of PCC provide a nutritional and biochemical basis for the use of the pigment or anthocyanins as a functional food factor—one that may be beneficial for helping to prevent diabetes and obesity.*6 It now remains for future studies to determine the possible contributing effects of other substances from purple corn which are extracted along with PCC.

More recent efforts to determine the potential anti-obesity mechanisms of purple corn pigment have focused on the effect of C3G on fat cell dysfunction, fat cell-specific gene expression, and the regulation of chemical messengers (adipocytokines) secreted by fat cells, such as the fat-derived hormone adiponectin. After feeding male mice a diet containing PCC to provide C3G (2 g/kg of feed for *2 weeks), gene expression levels of adiponectin in white fatty tissue was upregulated 1.*-fold compared to the control group not fed the food colorant.*7 Plasma and gene expression levels of adiponectin are decreased in obese humans and mice and in insulin resistant states.*7,*8 When adiponectin was administered intravenously to mice fed high-fat/sucrose diets, weight gain was significantly inhibited. Adiponectin (i.v.) also lowered plasma glucose levels in lean mice fed a high-fat meal.*8

Rich in C3G (approximately *0 mg/g), about *0,**0 kg of PCC is used in Japan as a food color for confections and soft drinks annually.*6 So far, PCC remains to be officially approved for use as a food colorant by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. However, approval seems likely because grape skin color and grape skin extract (enocianini or enocyanin)2 made from Concord grapes*9 (Vitis viniferaL., Vitaceae) are also rich in anthocyanins2 and both are FDA-approved for use in beverages and non-beverage foods.*9

Kenneth Jones is a medical writer specializing in the field of medicinal plants. He is the co-author ofBotanical Medicines: The Desk References for Major Herbal Supplements by McKenna, Jones, and Hughes (Haworth Herbal Press, ***2). He has no affiliation with any commercial producers of purple corn or any of the other products mentioned in this article.