Arizona: When
cinnamaldehyde, the compound that gives cinnamon its distinctive flavor
and smell, was added to the diet of mice, it protected them against
exposure to a carcinogen. Research conducted at the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy and the UA Cancer Center indicates that a compound derived from cinnamon is a potent inhibitor of colorectal cancer. Associate professor Georg Wondrak and professor Donna Zhang,
both of the College of Pharmacy's Department of Pharmacology and
Toxicology, recently completed a study in which they proved that adding
cinnamaldehyde — the compound that gives cinnamon its distinctive flavor
and smell — to the diet of mice protected the mice against colorectal
cancer. In response to cinnamaldehyde, the animals’ cells had acquired
the ability to protect themselves against exposure to a carcinogen
through detoxification and repair.
