Dr. Axe Wire · Food, herbs & supplements · health

Jaboticaba Peel Extract Curbs Aggressive Behavior In Resistant Prostate Cancer Cells

A lab study found a Brazilian fruit peel extract reduced invasive behavior in prostate cancer cells resistant to a standard hormone-blocking drug.

By Dr. Axe Editorial Team · October 22, 2026 · 1 source · Watch

A study published October 12, 2026 in Food & Function found that an extract from jaboticaba fruit peel reduced invasive and migratory behavior in castration-resistant prostate cancer cells treated with the hormone-blocking drug enzalutamide.

Researchers at Brazilian institutions tested jaboticaba (Plinia cauliflora) peel extract on two prostate cancer cell lines in a lab dish: PC-3, a castration-resistant line, and LNCaP, a hormone-dependent line. The castration-resistant cells resisted both the extract and enzalutamide, a drug that blocks androgen signaling, more than the hormone-dependent cells did. Even so, the extract reduced the PC-3 cells' ability to invade and migrate, and it reduced two behaviors linked to cancer spread: epithelial-mesenchymal transition, where cancer cells lose their fixed structure and become more mobile, and vasculogenic mimicry, where tumor cells form their own blood-vessel-like channels to feed themselves. Exact percentage changes, concentrations tested and sample sizes were not reported in the abstract.

The authors state that vasculogenic mimicry is frequently linked to treatment resistance, because tumors that build their own blood supply can keep growing even when a drug cuts off hormone signals. The authors conclude that while the extract worked more strongly against hormone-sensitive cells, it still showed potential as an add-on approach for the harder-to-treat castration-resistant form, by dialing down the mesenchymal shift and vessel-mimicking behavior.

JPE also has potential as an adjuvant therapy in the treatment of CRPC, particularly by impairing tumor cell mesenchymal behaviors

Study authorsFood & Function, 2026

This is cell-line research in a lab dish, not animals or people, and the abstract does not report how many times experiments were repeated or what concentrations of extract were used. Cancer cells in a dish often respond differently than tumors in a living body, so this cannot show whether the extract would help a person taking enzalutamide. Enzalutamide itself carries established side effects including fatigue, high blood pressure and a seizure risk in a small share of patients, none of which this lab study addresses.

Dr. Axe’s Take

This extract targets cancer cell adaptability in a dish, nowhere near a human trial, so I'd never suggest treating or adjusting prostate cancer care based on it. Enzalutamide blocks androgen signaling but doesn't fix why resistant cells rewire themselves to build their own blood supply, and it carries known costs: fatigue, high blood pressure and a seizure risk in a small percentage of men as side effects. If you're on enzalutamide, keep taking it as prescribed and watch for those side effects with your oncologist. Bring any interest in extracts like this to the treating physician first.

— Dr. Axe

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Story summary

Who: Castration-resistant (PC-3) and hormone-dependent (LNCaP) prostate cancer cell lines; sample size not reported
Design: In vitro lab-dish study testing jaboticaba peel extract alone and combined with enzalutamide
Dose: Not reported
Primary result: Extract reduced invasion, migration and vasculogenic mimicry in castration-resistant cells treated with enzalutamide; magnitude not reported
Secondary: PC-3 cells showed greater resistance to both extract and drug than LNCaP cells; extract reduced epithelial-mesenchymal transition markers, size not reported
Funding / conflicts: Funders listed in the journal record: Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo; Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico; Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior. Conflicts not reported in the abstract.
Date: Oct 12, 2026