Quantitative cancer inhibitory of hydroxytyrosol in olive oil compounds: an overview of observational and experimental studies

Abstract

Hydroxytyrosol (HTyr), an important phenol present in olives, stands out as a compound of high value due to its excellent antioxidant, antimicrobial and anticarcinogenic activities. Hydroxytyrosol (HTyr, 4-(2-(hydroxyethyl)-1,2-benzendiol)) is one of the main phenolic compounds in olives, virgin oil and waste water obtained during the production of olive oil. HTyr has been confirmed as the antioxidant with the highest free radical scavenging capacity, and is more active than antioxidant vitamins (C and E) as well as the synthetic antioxidants. Studies (human, animal, in vivo and in vitro) have shown many beneficial attributes of this ortho-diphenol compound, e. g. anti-inflammatory activity and inhibition of platelet aggregation. Similar to other polyphenols, HTyr was shown to prevent atherosclerosis through the inhibition of LDL oxidation. Furthermore, polyphenols extracted from the virgin olive oil containing mainly HTyr were also shown to inhibit different kinds of cancer, e. g. proliferation of human leukemia cells and colon carcinogenesis. This work summarizes current knowledge on the bioavailability, biological activities (e.g. anticancer activity, anti-inflammatory activity) and major active components of olive oil (containing mainly HTyr).