Apoptosis is a form of cell death i

Apoptosis is a form of cell death in which a programmed
sequence of events eliminates cells without damaging
neighbouring cells. Apoptosis is triggered through either a
death receptor mediated extrinsic pathway or a mitochondrial
intrinsic pathway. Phytotherapy is considered as an
alternative, to mitigate side effects due the indiscriminate
use of synthetic drugs. For many years, the antiproliferative
actions of chemotherapeutic drugs were ascribed solely to
their ability to induce genotoxic damage [1]. Therefore, the
role of plant derived polyphenols in chemoprevention of
cancer has emerged as an interesting area of research. To
date, many anticancer drugs have been developed and
applied by clinical doctors [2]. In addition flavonoids have
been shown to cause apoptosis through induction of Bax
with concomitant suppression of Bcl-2, or through other
molecules and pathways including up-regulation of death
receptor 5, modulation of IGFBP-3, involvement of p38-
MAPK, and inhibition of PI-3-kinase/Akt and ERK