MASTIC GUM

(Pistacia lentiscus , Greek: μαστίχα)

Chios mastic gum, a resin produced by the Pistacia lentiscus tree (an evergreen shrub from the pistachio tree family), has been used for a variety of gastric ailments in Mediterranean and Mideast countries for at least 3,000 years.

The name is derived probably from Grek word "μαστάζω "= chew, "μάσταξ"=mouth. Masticha looks like rock candy and has a distinctive taste and chewiness. It is a 100% Greek product, and as such is registered by the European Union as PDO (PGI) name. It is only produced on the island of Chios, in the Aegean Sea, and especially in the Southern part in the Mastic villages or the so called 'Mastichohoria'.

Mastic resin is a relatively expensive kind of spice, that has been used, principally, as a chewing gum, for at least 2,400 years. In adittion the aromatic, ivory coloured resin, also known as mastic, is harvested as a spice. As a spice, it continues to be used in Greece to flavour spirits and liquors (such as Chios's native drinks of Mastichato and mastica), chewing gum and a number of cakes, pastries, spoon sweets and desserts. Chios Mastic is known for many years and has always being produced in the traditional manner. It has medicinal, pharmaceutical and industrial applications.

In ancient times, mastic gum was highly revered for its medicinal properties in the relief of dyspepsia and other intestinal disorders. The benefits of this naturally occurring resin are now being rediscovered for their antimicrobial effects.



 Mastic resin, which comes exclusively from the Greek island of Chios

Mastic mainly consists of triterpenes of the oleanane, euphane, and lupane types and -tocopherol . Latest analysis indicated that the acidic fraction of mastic extract consists of triterpenic acids with major oleanonic acid content, while the neutral fraction consists of neutral triterpenic compounds (alcohols and aldehydes), as well as phytosterols like tirucallol . Several studies have already been published on mastic gum with regard to its positive effects on the gastrointestinal environment, especially against at least seven different strains of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). H. pylori is one of the most common chronic bacterial infections in humans and affects most populations throughout the world. Additionally, mastic gum is already known for its antioxidant capacity, Recent studies demonstrate that Chios mastic induces apoptosis and possesses antiproliferative activity in colon cancer cells. Mastic has also been associated with cardiovascular protection, exerting its effect mainly through increasing the antioxidant defense system and effectively lowering the levels of serum cholesterol in human subjects. Moreover, mastic extract has been shown to inhibit human low-density lipoprotein (LDL) oxidation in vitro and oxidized LDL cytotoxic effect on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) .

Mastic oil from Pistacia lentiscus has been recently shown to exert also anti-tumor growth activity through inhibition of cancer cell proliferation, survival, angiogenesis and inflammatory response because of the mixture of volatile compounds, mainly terpenes, with established beneficial biological properties. This is against several cancer types through mechanisms involving inhibition of tumor cell proliferation and survival, restriction of angiogenesis and modulation of pro-tumor inflammatory response. In addition, mastic oil treatment has been shown to target the expression and function of key signaling and transcription regulators implicated in malignant phenotype like Ras/RhoA GTPases and NF-κB.

Balan KV, Prince J, Han Z, Dimas K, Cladaras M, Wyche JH, Sitaras NM, Pantazis P. Antiproliferative activity and induction of apoptosis in human colon cancer cells treated in vitro with constituents of a product derived from Pistacia lentiscus L. var. chia. Phytomedicine 14:263–272, 2007

Moulos P, Papadodima O, Chatziioannou A, Loutrari H, Roussos C, Kolisis FN.A transcriptomic computational analysis of mastic oil-treated Lewis lung carcinomas reveals molecular mechanisms targeting tumor cell growth and survival. BMC Med Genomics. 2009 Dec 15;2:68.

Sakagami H, Kishino K, Kobayashi M, Hashimoto K, Iida S, Shimetani A, Nakamura Y, Takahashi K, Ikarashi T, Fukamachi H, Satoh K, Nakashima H, Shimizu T, Takeda K, Watanabe S, Nakamura W.

Selective antibacterial and apoptosis-modulating activities of mastic. In Vivo. 2009 Mar-Apr

Mahmoudi M, Ebrahimzadeh MA, Nabavi SF, Hafezi S, Nabavi SM, Eslami Sh Antiinflammatory and antioxidant activities of gum mastic. Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci. 2010 Sep;14(9):765-9.