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Discussion:
There are widespread suggestions that cranberry and cherry juices have anti-inflammatory properties. From our objective results, we can say that cranberries have the anti-inflammatory property of inhibiting IL-8 production from HT29 epithelial cells. Ultimately it will be important to find and enrich the active ingredient(s) in order to best use it as anti-inflammatory therapy.
Although the sour cherries do not have the same anti-inflammatory property as cranberries, there is still a possibility that the sour cherries might inhibit the production of other interleukin cytokines produced during inflammation and therefore have anti-inflammatory properties as well. These would be future experiments.
Perhaps, these juices work better as anti-inflammatory agents on other epithelia.
One shortcoming of this experimental test for the anti-inflammatory properties of juices on HT29 cells is that ingested juice must first pass through the stomach and may be modified by digestive processes. Another mode of delivery to the intestine may be necessary, e.g. coated pills.
Furthermore, the epithelial cells are lined by mucus which might inhibit the absorption of the active ingredient in cranberry juice.
Despite the suggestion that cherry juice was an anti-inflammatory and our results were contrary, both juices should be tested further using other experimental models of inflammation. |