ABSTRACT
I. INTRODUCTION Most beneficial or harmful physiological responses are regulated by the balance between prooxidants and antioxidants. Many compounds derived from several commonly used spices block production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in several in vitro and in vivo systems. Owing to their antioxidant properties, various therapeutic effects have been assigned to these spices and spice-derived ingredients. These effects stem from their ability to interfere with signal transduction pathways involving various transcription factors, protein kinases, phosphatases, and other metabolic enzymes. The antioxidant activity of the spices plays a role in suppression of cell growth, viral replication, inflammation, inhibition of allergy and arthritis, prevention of cancer and heart diseases, and in abrogation of several other pathological conditions. Some of the known in vitro and in vivo effects of the ingredients derived from spices are discussed in this chapter.
