TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure describes vegetable powders and methods for manufacturing vegetable powders. Kits and compositions including the vegetable powders are also described.

BACKGROUND

The war on cancer, which began in 1971, continues with few drugs that selectively kill tumor cells despite the wide array of molecular targets. Tumor cells' astounding adaptability explains much of the poor performance of some of the current therapies. Drugs designed to inactivate certain receptor tyrosine kinases have a brief success that is usually followed by the development of drug resistance. Similarly, drugs designed to induce enough DNA damage to trigger apoptosis are effective until the genes encoding signaling proteins required for cell death become silenced or mutated. Multi-drug resistance can also occur if tumor cells increase their expression of certain ABC transporters in the plasma membrane. Genetically engineered viruses for virotherapy and tumor vaccines designed to enable MHC class I molecules to present tumor antigens to immune cells have shown efficacy in animal studies, yet few such therapies have been tested in humans in large numbers. Drug cocktails are more effective but may worsen side effects and the composition must be adjusted to stay ahead of drug resistance. Adaptation is an emergent property of the cooperation among heterogeneous tumor cells and between tumor cells and stromal cells. The battle raging between clinicians and tumor cells is an arms race with escalating costs and proportionally small decreases in human suffering.

Humans have been gathering and archiving knowledge of medicinal plants for tens of thousands of years. Natural products research provides society with untold numbers of life saving drugs. Several chemotherapies have been developed from plants, e.g. paclitaxel, vincristine, and irinotecan. The treatment of many cellular disorders, for example, tumors, and other hyperproliferative diseases, may involve the systemic use of therapeutic agents. These agents may exert their activity in a variety of ways. In many, if not most instances, the therapeutic agent may not address the abnormal cell specifically, but rather tends to exert its effectiveness systemically across all cells. Systemic administration may therefore expose both abnormal cells and healthy, normal cells to the effects of the therapeutic agent. Although potentially effective therapeutically against the abnormal cells, systemic administration of the therapeutic effect may be detrimental or cause detrimental side effects to the normal healthy cells. This may result in a smaller amount of the intended dosage of the therapeutic agent reaching and addressing the abnormal cells or tumor. In addition, a greater amount of the intended dosage of the therapeutic agent may reach and address the normal healthy cells.

Systemic delivery of therapeutic agents may hinder the dosing parameters from being maximized because of the potentially harmful side effects. In addition, the detrimental effect to the normal healthy cells may weaken and/or cause a decrease in population numbers of the healthy cells thereby decreasing the ability of the healthy cells to fight the proliferation of the abnormal cells.

For example, anti-neoplastic agents may be cytotoxic. The anti-neoplastic agents may exert their cytotoxic activity in a variety of ways, sometimes interfering with a cellular function essential for the replication and/or viability of the cell. Many anti-neoplastic agents may be administered systemically and may not be designed specifically to attack the abnormal cells only, but rather may be designed to exert their effectiveness due to the more rapid proliferation of the abnormal cell, as compared to normal healthy cells. While many organs of the body of a mammalian host regenerate cells rather slowly, there may also be other organs, particularly bone marrow, which involve rapid proliferation of stem cells. Therefore, anti-neoplastic agents may not only affect the slowly regenerating cells detrimentally but may also have a particularly pernicious effect on bone marrow production and the immune system.

Despite the possible disadvantages and side effects of employing the systemic use of therapeutic agents, this method has found extensive application because the agents may have provided some positive results. However, there remains a substantial interest in being able to employ therapeutic agents in a manner which is less systemic, i.e., directed more specifically toward the abnormal cells, while simultaneously protecting sensitive normal cells, in the vicinity of and distant from the site of the abnormal cells. In addition, there remains a need for therapeutic compositions which are directed more specifically toward the abnormal cells while simultaneously promoting proliferation of the normal healthy cells, in the vicinity of and/or distant from the site of abnormal cells.

In addition, there is a general lack of healthy eating amongst the general populations. As evidenced by the increase in cancer-related disease states, as well as the epidemic of obesity, pre-diabetes, diabetes, heart disease, etc., an average person may be more likely to choose an unhealthy food option, which tastes great, over a healthy food option, like vegetables, which may not taste great or have a pleasing texture. Therefore, it would be beneficial to provide a way to infuse the nutrients commonly found in raw vegetables into any food, healthy or unhealthy, in a palatable manner without effecting taste and/or texture of the food.

In addition, the benefits associated with raw vegetables may be further added to non-food items, such as health and beauty aids.

SUMMARY

Vegetable powders and methods of manufacturing such vegetable powders are described herein.

Methods of manufacturing vegetable powder(s) are provided herein and, in some embodiments, include chilling at least one vegetable below ambient room temperature for a period of time to form a chilled vegetable, heating the chilled vegetable to a temperature above ambient room temperature to form at least one dried vegetable, and comminuting the at least one dried vegetable at ambient room temperature to form a vegetable powder.

In some embodiments, the methods of manufacturing vegetable powder(s) further include washing the at least one vegetable prior to chilling, to form at least one washed vegetable.

In some embodiments, the methods of manufacturing vegetable powder(s) further include rinsing the at least one washed vegetable to form at least one rinsed and washed vegetable prior to chilling.

In some embodiments, the methods of manufacturing vegetable powder(s) include freezing at least one vegetable to a temperature below about 0° C. to form a frozen vegetable, heating the at least one frozen vegetable to a temperature above about 30° C. to form at least one dehydrated vegetable, and comminuting the at least one dehydrated vegetable to form a vegetable powder.

In some embodiments, the methods of manufacturing vegetable powder(s) further include washing the at least one vegetable with a detergent in warm water to form at least one washed vegetable, rinsing the washed vegetable in cold water to remove the detergent to form a rinsed vegetable; chilling the washed and rinsed vegetable to a temperature below room temperature to form a chilled vegetable, heating the chilled vegetable to a temperature above room temperature to form a dried vegetable, and comminuting the dried vegetable to form a vegetable powder.

In some embodiments, the methods of manufacturing vegetable powder(s) include washing the at least one whole leaf vegetable with a detergent in warm water to form at least one washed whole leaf vegetable, rinsing the washed whole leaf vegetable in cold water to remove the detergent to form a rinsed whole leaf vegetable, chilling the washed and rinsed whole leaf vegetable to a temperature below room temperature to form a chilled whole leaf vegetable, heating the chilled whole leaf vegetable to a temperature above room temperature to form a dried whole leaf vegetable, and comminuting the dried whole leaf vegetable to form a vegetable powder.

In some embodiments, the methods of manufacturing vegetable powder(s) include washing whole leaf kale with a detergent in warm water to form washed whole leaf kale, rinsing the washed whole leaf kale in cold water to remove the detergent to form a rinsed whole leaf kale; chilling the washed and rinsed whole leaf kale to a temperature below room temperature to form a chilled whole leaf kale, heating the chilled whole leaf kale to a temperature above room temperature to form a dried whole leaf kale, and comminuting the dried whole leaf kale to form a kale powder.

In some embodiments, methods of manufacturing kale powder(s) include freezing whole leaf kale to form frozen whole leaf kale, heating the frozen whole leaf kale to form dehydrated whole leaf kale, and comminuting the dehydrated whole leaf kale to form a kale powder.

In some embodiments, a vegetable powder(s) described herein may include only one type of vegetable, such as only kale. In some embodiments, a vegetable powder(s) described herein may include a combination of vegetables, such as kale and spinach.

In some embodiments, the vegetable powders described herein may include at least 90% of the nutrients of the whole leaf vegetable.

In some embodiments, the vegetable powders described herein may include pesticides in an amount which is less than about 2% of acceptable EPA tolerances, and particularly less than at least 1% of acceptable EPA tolerances.

In some embodiments, the vegetable powders described herein may include at least about 900% of the flavonoids of the whole leaf vegetable.

In some embodiments, a vegetable powder(s) described herein may be combined with at least one additional agent to form a vegetable composition.

In some embodiments, a vegetable composition includes a vegetable powder and at least one of a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier, a therapeutic agent, an optional ingredient, a food-related product, health/beauty aid, and combinations thereof.

In some embodiments, the vegetable powder and/or vegetable composition is placed in a capsule for oral delivery from once to several times per day.

In some embodiments, a vegetable powder and/or vegetable composition may be administered via any appropriate route, including oral, buccal, sublingual, rectal, topical, intranasal, vaginal, parenteral, combinations thereof, and the like.

In some embodiments, a vegetable powder and/or vegetable composition may be used to treat any form of cancer or precancerous lesion including killing cancer cells and/or precancerous cells. In additional embodiments, the vegetable powders and/or vegetable composition may also increase the growth of healthy cells at or near the cancerous or precancerous cells.

In some embodiments, a vegetable powder and/or vegetable composition is added to a liquid and frozen to provide vegetable powder and/or vegetable composition ice cubes. In some embodiments, the liquid is water.

Kits including a vegetable powder and/or vegetable composition and a container are also described. In some embodiments, the container is a shaker. In some embodiments, the container is a sealable plastic bag.

