ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Mol. Biosci.
Sec. Cellular Biochemistry
This article is part of the Research TopicExploring beneficial effects of bioactive compounds from food wastes in physiopathological conditionsView all articles
Preclinical evaluation of waste-derived pomegranate extract (PWE) as a potential preventing and therapeutic agent for benign prostatic hyperplasia
Provisionally accepted
Valeria Consoli1,2*
Agata Grazia D'Amico1
Claudio Mario Russo3
Emanuele Foderà 3
DANIELA PASSARELLA3
Antonio Pecorino4
Velia D'Agata5
Luca Vanella1,2
Valeria Sorrenti1,2- 1Universita degli Studi di Catania Dipartimento di Scienze del Farmaco e della Salute, Catania, Italy
- 2CERNUT-Interdepartmental Research Centre on Nutraceuticals and Health Products, Department of Drug and Health Sciences,, Catania, Italy
- 3Universita degli Studi del Molise, Campobasso, Italy
- 4Mediterranean Nutraceutical Extracts (Medinutrex), Catania, Italy
- 5Universita degli Studi di Catania Dipartimento di Scienze biomediche e biotecnologiche, Catania, Italy
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Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a highly prevalent age-related condition, affecting nearly half of men over 60 and up to 80% over 80 years old. Chronic inflammation and oxidative stress are recognized contributors to BPH progression and may facilitate the development of prostate cancer. Growing interest in sustainable, natural chemopreventive agents has highlighted agro-industrial by-products as valuable sources of bioactive compounds. In this study, we evaluated the protective and therapeutic effects of pomegranate waste extract (PWE), a phytochemical-rich by-product of Mediterranean agri-food processing, in a testosterone-induced rat model of BPH. Immunohistochemistry and Western blot analyses revealed that testosterone administration reduced the expression of PECAM-1 and increased the levels of NRF2, HO-1, and IL1R1, consistently with endothelial dysfunction, oxidative stress, and inflammation. Co-treatment with PWE restored these markers toward control levels, indicating attenuation of testosterone-driven molecular alterations. Proteomic profiling further demonstrated that testosterone dysregulated proteins involved in mitochondrial function, redox balance, and DNA repair; on the contrary, PWE normalized their levels and enhanced antioxidant enzymes. In periprostatic adipose tissue, PWE counteracted testosterone-induced upregulation of HO-1, NRF2, and GPX4. Overall, PWE mitigates oxidative, inflammatory, and metabolic dysfunctions associated with experimental BPH, supporting its potential as a sustainable natural chemopreventive strategy.
Keywords: agricultural wastes5, BPH1, circular economy6, inflammation3, nutraceuticals4, oxidative stress2
Received: 16 Dec 2025; Accepted: 23 Jan 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Consoli, D'Amico, Russo, Foderà , PASSARELLA, Pecorino, D'Agata, Vanella and Sorrenti. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Valeria Consoli
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