Herbal composition for treating CD33+ acute and chronic myeloid leukemia and a method thereof

Patent Number: 7,306,817

Myeloid leukemias are known as conventional "stem cell malignancies" in that there is unequivocal evidence that the cell causing the propagation of the neoplasia is a transformed stem cell. This was what led to the discovery of tumor stem cells in solid tumors many years after.

In the current patent a method of treating AML and CML expressing the stem cell marker CD33 is disclosed. The patent covers an extract of the plant Piper betel as well as a fraction of the plant that contains 3-O-p-coumaryl quinic acid.

According to wikipedia, in Ayurvedic medicine, this plant has use as an aphrodisiac as well as having other medicinal properties.

The inventor of the patent published a paper disclosing radioprotectant effects of this plant (Bhattacharya et al. Radioprotective property of the ethanolic extract of Piper betel Leaf. J Radiat Res (Tokyo). 2005 Jun;46(2):165-71). There seems to be no clinical data in the patent. No publications can be found on pubmed describing antileukemic activities of the plant or 3-O-p-coumaryl quinic acid.

View this patent on the USPTO website.