Publication Date
Spring 2018
School
School of Health Sciences
Major
Biology: Biomedical Sciences
Recommended Citation
Abbasi, Ramzi, "Inhibition of Human Cytochrome P450-3A4 isoform by Crude Extracts from Acai Berry" (2018). Senior Honors Theses. 789.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/honors/789
Abstract
The oxidoreductase enzymes that comprise the human liver cytochrome P450 (CYP450) system are vital in metabolism, lipid synthesis, and detoxification of the human body. It is known that enzymes in this pathway process the majority of pharmaceuticals, thus the study of these enzymes proves to be valuable in determining potentially harmful drug interactions. The amazon acaí berry has gained popularity in recent years due to its reported health benefits and has been deemed by many health organizations as a superfood. The purpose of this research was to determine the effects of isolated acaí berry extracts on the activity of the CYP 450 enzyme 3A4 and 2D6 to determine if there is a possible drug interaction. The results obtained suggest that compounds in certain acaí fractionations, specifically 94-C (Diosmetin) inhibit the enzymes’ activity by approximately 68%. While further research into the metabolism of acaí berries must be conducted, these results imply that eating acaí berries may be harmful while taking certain medications due to the inability of CYP 3A4 and 2D6 enzymes to adequately metabolize the drug.
