Abscisic acid is a hormone that is produced by plants. Due to its special properties, it has found application in several areas of human life. One of the most significant of these is cancer treatment. In the article, we consider a detailed description of the acid, how it fights the disease and where it is used, except for medicine.
What is it and what does it contain?
Abscisic acid (ABA) was discovered by a number of scientists in different countries in the middle of the 20th century. The name of the hormone Abscisine or Abscisio translates as decay. ABA is part of natural plant growth inhibitors.
Hormone Features:
- it is synthesized in plants;
- slows down growth;
- Helps plants move to a state of complete dormancy.
ABA contain leaves, branches, seeds, and even plant roots. The presence of a large amount of acid can completely stop growth. The effects of ABA include dormancy of seeds and buds, leaf fall. Acid is responsible for preparing plants for winter. Peace comes during the ripening of seeds. The dormant state of seeds and buds allows plants to maintain viability in the winter cold. Using abscisic acid in plants, the following processes occur:
- proteins and starch are formed;
- mouths are closed;
- seed dehydration occurs.
Why do plants need it?
ABA for plants is a kind of MOE. It is also called the "stress hormone". To prevent the plant from dying under unfavorable conditions, abscisic acid gives a command to slow growth or go to complete rest. Adverse conditions include:
- drought;
- sharp fluctuation in air temperature;
- excess of permissible humidity for a certain type of plant;
- winter period.
When adverse conditions occur, the rate of hormone synthesis increases, the concentration can increase by 40 times. With the onset of growth processes after winter and watering plants, the acid content decreases sharply. A little behind in growth, however, the plant remains viable.
Abscisic Acid and Cancer
Every year, various medical laboratories produce new drugs for the treatment of cancer. The constant component of the treatment is chemotherapy, which in addition to the positive effect gives many side effects.
An important factor in promoting ABA in oncology is the undetected contradictions in the human body with the intake of the hormone. The value of acid in treatment is the absence of side effects. ABA is recommended after the removal of operable tumors. Studying abscisin, foreign scientists came to the conclusion:
- abscisic acid inhibits the development of leukemia;
- ABA helps the immune system cope with cancer cells;
- any form of cancer can be treated with ABA;
- the hormone increases the immune system's ability to detect and destroy cancer cells;
- large positive dynamics in the treatment of blood cancer;
- the correct and timely administration of abscisin gives an impetus to the body to destroy diseased cells;
- ABA helps the body deal with bowel oncology.
To strengthen immunity, along with acid, it is necessary to use foods with a high content of vitamin A. These include:
- beef liver;
- cream and milk with a high percentage of fat content;
- butter, fatty fish (mackerel, sturgeon);
- From fruits and vegetables suitable pumpkin, parsley, carrots, apricots, spinach.
Unlike foreign countries, Russia has just begun to study the pharmacological properties of acid in oncology.
How much is acid?
ABA can be obtained from a doctor. He will also prescribe a dosage and will check the effectiveness of the treatment. It is delivered under special conditions and stored at the appropriate temperature. More detailed storage conditions are discussed below.
For other uses, abscisin is available on the Internet at special sites. The average price of abscisic acid per 100 mg is 3-5 thousand rubles. Also, sellers indicate the degree of its purity, which can vary from 95 to 99 percent.
Abscisic acid release form and storage
For internal use, liquid and solid forms of acid are used. The latter exists in the form of a crystalline colorless powder in capsules. Dosage of 10 mg. The capsule is made from vegetable cellulose. In liquid form it is believed that the effect of use is much higher.
ABA is dissolved in distilled water, ethyl alcohol and polysorbate. For different concentrations of the hormone, different dilution schemes are used. In pharmacies are sold in packs of 100 and 250 mg. Abscisic acid is a part of nutritional supplements that can make up the daily norm of the hormone.
If the patient takes ABA at home on his own, you must follow the storage rules:
- in sunlight and high temperature, the chemical composition of the acid changes;
- when preparing the solution, it is necessary to include sodium bicarbonate and carbon dioxide in its composition;
- storage of the mother liquor provides for opaque closed containers;
- storage is required in the refrigerator.
Other applications
The use of abscisic acid is especially common in agriculture and crop production. Acid refers to phytohormones. In nature, there are two opposite hormones:
- ethylene, responsible for the ripening of fruits;
- abscisin, responsible for the aging of fruits.
In agriculture, synthetic plant growth inhibitors are used to prevent premature lodging of crops. This is achieved by reducing the growth of the stem.
When cotton fields are treated with abscisic acid, yield loss is reduced due to simultaneous ripening.
In gardening, ABA is used as a sprayer of trees for the simultaneous fall of fruits. The most famous use of acid is to kill weeds with the herbicides that it contains. The seeds treated with the phytohormone of aging do not give premature sprouts, maintaining their varietal identity.
Plant growth inhibitor is used in decorative floriculture. In some plants, flowering occurs during a period of growth retardation, for example, in azaleas. The use of phytohormones has increasingly become summer residents, lovers of growing flowers and environmentally friendly products. Such hormones are not chemical fertilizers, therefore they are safe for people.
Abscisic acid can be said to be in great demand. It is especially valued as a unique medicine for the effective destruction of cancer cells. Since acid is a phytohormone and does not harm the human body, it is widely used in agriculture to slow down or accelerate the growth and maturation of plants.