Description: <p><b>Black Seed Oil</b> - <i>Nigella sativa</i> Seed Oil</p>
*** many database entries are under <a href="https://nestronics.ca/dbx/tbResList.php?qv=162">TQ</a> the main active ingredient *****
<p><b>Recommended Abbreviation:</b> BSO</p>
<p><b>Alternative Names:</b> Nigella sativa oil, black cumin seed oil, black caraway oil, kalonji oil</p>
<p><b>Type:</b> Botanical oil / natural product / seed oil</p>
<p><b>Source:</b> Oil obtained from the seeds of <i>Nigella sativa</i> L. (Ranunculaceae), commonly by cold pressing or solvent extraction.</p>
<p><b>Main Active Constituent:</b> Thymoquinone (TQ) is the best-characterized pharmacologically active volatile constituent of black seed oil.</p>
<p><b>Other Bioactive Constituents:</b> Thymohydroquinone, dithymoquinone and related quinones, p-cymene, carvacrol, thymol, α-thujene and other terpenes, together with a fixed-oil fraction rich in linoleic acid, oleic acid, palmitic acid, and other fatty acids. The relative concentrations vary with cultivar, geographic origin, storage, and extraction method.</p>
<p><b>Function:</b> Black seed oil exhibits antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory, metabolic, antimicrobial, and experimental anticancer activities. Its effects arise from thymoquinone together with other volatile compounds and the fatty-acid-rich fixed-oil fraction.</p>
<p><b>Cancer:</b> Black seed oil and <i>Nigella sativa</i> preparations have demonstrated preclinical anticancer activity, including proliferation ↓, inflammatory signaling ↓, oxidative-stress modulation, apoptosis ↑, and migration/invasion ↓. Thymoquinone accounts for many of the best-characterized anticancer mechanisms, but whole-oil effects should not automatically be attributed solely to TQ.</p>
<p><b>Alzheimer's Disease:</b> Black seed oil and <i>Nigella sativa</i> preparations have shown experimental neuroprotective effects involving oxidative stress ↓, neuroinflammation ↓, mitochondrial protection, and cholinergic and memory-related pathways. Thymoquinone is likely an important contributor, but whole-oil studies should be kept distinct from isolated TQ studies.</p>
<p><b>Database Relationship:</b> Parent botanical product linked primarily to Thymoquinone (TQ), with additional links to other identified constituents where separate product records exist.</p>