6 ms·
So the Annonaceous acetogenins are what's called mitochondrial complex I inhibitors. Basically the way they work is they cause a buildup of radical oxides withi
by Alex3917 3y ago
So the Annonaceous acetogenins are what's called mitochondrial complex I inhibitors. Basically the way they work is they cause a buildup of radical oxides within your mitochondria, which decrease how efficient your mitochondria are at producing energy. In small doses, this is probably a good thing -- you give your mitochondria a good workout, and then eventually some antioxidants clear out the radical oxides and your mitochondria end up stronger than before. But in sufficiently large doses, you will start killing off your mitochondria, and if you kill enough (likely over several decades) it will cause something called Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, which is fatal.
The good news is that there is only one recorded case in history of someone who is suspected to have gotten PSP from eating pawpaws, a grower in New Jersey. The acetoenins in pawpaws have a fairly low bioavalability, so it's probably only a significant risk if you are 1) eating large quantities 2) doing something to increase the bioavailability of the acetogenins, e.g. cooking them with fat or maybe mixing them with alcohol.
If you eat moderate quantities out of hand, then most likely you are just reducing your cancer and diabetes risk, without taking on any increased risk of PSP. And since cancer and diabetes kill hundreds of times more people than PSP, overall eating them out of hand is almost certainly a net positive for your health -- especially when you compare them with the health effects of ice cream or whatever other dessert you'd have otherwise have been eating in their place.
That said, the cultivars that are specifically known to be low in acetogenins are: Sunflower, Wabash, Potomac, Zimmerman, Wells, Mango, Shenandoah.
Of these, the ones that are actually good are Wabash, Shenandoah, Sunflower, and Potomac. So if you just want to grow cultivars low in acetogenins, grow at least two of those four.
- cactusplant7374 3y ago> decrease how efficient your mitochondria are at producing energy So basically, a natural DNP?
- Alex3917 3y agoI'm not familiar with DNP, I'd have to look into it more. I have read a lot of the research on metformin, because that is also suspected to act like a mitochondrial complex I inhibitor in some circumstances. (Although it seems to act different ways in different situations, so no one really knows what's going on there yet.) But regardless, Peter Attia considered metformin to be a longevity drug (at least before he decided it might be hurting his muscle growth), so there may be a lot of precedent for using mitochondrial complex I inhibitors for health benefits, assuming metformin actually has that mechanism of action.
- durkie 3y agowow, thanks for the thorough reply. Atlanta's pawpaw population is taking off and they're fun to introduce to people, but I've been hesitant to do so more lately knowing that they may not be 100% good for you. seems like it's actually not so bad in moderation.
- Grazester 3y agoParents eat it at least once a week. They have a tree that bears so such it broke it's head off due to the load once when I was over there.The tree are hallow and not terribly strong. I think you're safe. My wife hates the scent of the thing though.
- b112 3y agoI wonder if one might liken this to arsenic in apples. I tend to eat the whole apple, core, seeds, stem, but there's so little it's not a biggie. Plants have to fight off bacteria after all.
- 0xDEADFED5 3y agoeven the stem??? and here i thought i was adventurous for not peeling carrots and potatoes
- Alex3917 3y ago
- atdrummond 3y agoDinitrophenol[1][2] has been used by bodybuilders for similar increased mitochondrial energy expenditure to burn more fat. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2,4-Dinitrophenol https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2,4-Dinitrophenol [2] https://portlandpress.com/biochemj/article-abstract/111/4/431/16544/The-effect-of-2-4-dinitrophenol-on-adipose-tissue https://portlandpress.com/biochemj/article-abstract/111/4/43...?
- pvaldes 3y ago> cooking them with fat or maybe mixing them with alcohol. Taking notes carefully, thanks > the ones that are actually good are Wabash, Shenandoah, Sunflower, and Potomac Well's delight is a four of five stars so, over average. Shenandoah that tastes like a banana is maybe a 4.5. Sunflower (said to have also a bland banana taste) could be maybe a 3.5. but it depends a lot of the ripeness, the number of fruits in the tree (Prolific by comparison is a 'one star over five', but... lots of fruits) and the personal taste. Ripeness is a trait that is tricky to realize. As a rule of thumb, if it has black spots is overripe. The fruit can taste like a mix of caramel, vanille, bubblegum, pineapple, banana and poison (if overripe or wild variety). More or less depending on the variety.
- Alex3917 3y agoTo me the wild ones generally taste like a mix of unripe pear and diesel fuel. Extremely unpleasant, so it's no wonder that so many people who have tried pawpaws think they don't like them.