Sunflower, Alpine

Injections of a yucca/alpine sunflower extract, as developed by now-retired University of Wyoming chemistry professor Owen Asplund, have bear reported to be used successfully in Switzerland against melanoma, and presumably may act as an enzyme inhibitor. Incidentally, the injections are given in the stomach area, which slows down the assimilation of a potent vaccine, as was practiced with the old rabies vaccine. 

The Sigma catalog lists tyrosinase, the enzyme involved in melanoma. As mentioned elsewhere, among the inhibitors listed in the handbooks of enzyme inhibitors are ascorbic acid, or vitamin C, halide ion (the halides being chlorides, notably, but also fluorides, bromides, and iodides), butyric acid (a component of rancid butter), lactic acid (the final product of anaerobic glycolysis, as occurs in cancer cell metabolism, and a component also of sour milk and buttermilk), oxalic acid (e.g., as found in rhubarb and in wood sorrel), formic acid (a component of ant stings), even tyrosine itself, and toxic cyanide ion. And, as has been indicated, alpine sunflower/yueea extract may possibly serve as an enzyme inhibitor for tyrosinase. 

Extracts from the yucca plant and alpine sunflower as agents against melanoma were studied by now-retired University of Wyoming chemistry professor Owen Asplund, reported in Chapter 5, Chapter 6, and Chapter 8. The successful clinical application is said to be in routine use in Switzerland, but has not been given clearance in the United States. 

With regard to melanoma, which involves the enzyme tyrosinase, there are a number of inhibitors listed in the handbooks for this particular enzyme. Among them, interestingly, is ascorbic acid, or vitamin C, as well as some other commonly encountered substances such as lactic acid (from sour milk products) and butyric acid (from rancid butter). The aforecited alpine sunflower/yucca extract developed by Owen Asplund of the University of Wyonming may very well act as an enzyme inhibitor for tyrosinase. 

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