Squid Ink

by
Melchor F. Cichon
September 19, 2006

If you prepare squids for your food, do not squeeze out and wash away their ink because it contains an anti-cancer substance.

This is the conclusion drawn by a group of Japanese scientists on the medicinal value of squid ink.

They discovered that squid ink contains mucopolysaccharide which is "involved in the healing of scars and formation of cartilage."

For more information, please read the excerpt below.

"A research group led by Hajime Matsue at the Aomori Prefecture Industrial Technology Center first announced in 1990 that squid ink contains substances with tumour inhibiting activity. The group has continued to pursue influential research since then. According to report by Matsue et al., while they were initially researching a mucopolysaccharide known as chondroitin sulphate (contained abundanly in cartilage and elsewhere), they noticed that mucopolysaccharides are also present in squid ink. Moreover, they showed that these were previously undiscovered types of mucopolysaccharide. Mucopolysaccharides, major components of cartilage, skin, and others, normally bond with protein to created a complex called proteoglycan, and are involved in the healing of scars and formation of cartilage.

"On measuring the tumour inhibition activity of this newly discovered mucopolysaccharide-peptide complex in squid ink, it was clearly found to have the effect of curing cancer. The experiment... was conducted as follows. One million cancer cells were injected into the abdominal cavity of a number of mice. Then the mucopolysaccharide-peptide complex from squid ink was injected tinto the abdominal cavity at the rate of 0.2mg per mouse two days later, four days later, and six days later. The progress of recovery from the cancer was then observed. zmice that had received no treatment at all died 2-3 weeks. But those treated with the mucopolysaccharide-peptide complex showed a 65% rate of recovery. Moreover, it was also proved that this mucopolysaccharide-peptide complex had hardly any direct toxicity towards the tunour cells, but that it activated the macrophage of the mice. Although it would be too hasty to draw the conclusion that eating squid ink cures cancer, it is beyond doubt that squid ink contains substances with outstanding bioactivity. Further research is therefore expected to develop in future."

Here is another study on squid ink that confirms this early study of Hajime Matsue.

"The anti-tumor activity of a new type of peptidoglycan isolated from squid ink was shown to have a cure rate of 64% for Meth A tumor from BALB/c mice. The ink delipidated in acetone, which contained the peptidoglycan at 0.1% (w/w), was administered to tumor-transplanted mice so as to examine the anti-tumor activity. One-fifth of the tumor-bearing mise was cured with 3 injections (1 mg/head) of the acetone delipidated squid ink or a prolongation of survival was observed in the treated animals, Heat treatment at 100 degrees C for 10 min did not affect the anti-tumor activity of the delipidated ink, its potentiality being preserved. The acetone-extractable fraction of the ink also brought about a similar cure rate for Meth A tumor. The delipidated ink enhanced the phagocytic activity of macrophages but no direct cytotoxicity was observed for the Meth A tumor cells. Hence it may be said that the anti-tumor activity of the delipidated ink was mainly due to the augmented cellular immunity in vivo." (Sasaki J. et al.)

If this is true, then many Filipinos would benefit from this discovery since the Philippines is producing a lot of squid. And squid is one commodity that has been a favorite among Filipinos.

Below is the Philippine squid production through the years, both from commercial and marine municipal waters.

The productions of squids from the municipal fishing areas from 1950 to 1976 are not available.

This writer failed to get the production of squid from 2002 and above.

Commercial Productions
(from 1950 to 1977 in kilograms; the rest in Metric tons)

1950---11,574
1951---19,092
1952---16,143
1953---22,758
1954---35,760
1955---139,896
1956---138,195
1957---153,654
1958---203,313
1959---355,910
1960---281,420
1961---253,740
1962---1,363,220
1963---2,913,330
1964---3,629,400
1965---4,964,320
1966---5,604,080
1967---4,782,360
1968---9,221,840
1969---6,365,560
1970---5,862,400
1971---5,713,480
1972---7,451,400
1973---7,174,460
1974---9,264,660
1975---13,606,800
1976---10,560,150
1977---12,228,000
1978---16,051
1979---11,830
1980---13,776
1981---10.167
1982---9,789
1983---11,023
1984---10,309
1985---8,496
1986---10,254
1987---11,442
1988---28,962 (Total production)
1989---26, 639 (Total production)
1990---8,831
1991---26,672 (Total production)
1992---39,402 (Total production)
1993---10,169
1994---12,957
1995---13,106
1996---12,840
1997---12,948
1998---13,277
1999---14,584
2000---14,522
2001---14,177

Marine Municipal Production in MT

1977---12,784
1978---10,016
1979--13,665
1980---13,235
1981---17,813
1982---11,200
1983---19,718
1984---10,005
1985---16,127
1986---16,378
1987---14,989
1988--- Pls. see the Commercial production
1989--- do
1990--- 17,743
1991--- Pls. see the Commercial production
1992--- Pls. see the Commercial production
1993---45,620
1994--- 35,991
1995--- 43,309
1996--- 39,618
1997---41,207
1998---35,401
1999---32,531
2000---32,256
2001---33,677

Source:

Masayo Okuzumi and Tateo Fujii, eds. Nutritional and functional Properties of Squid and Cuttlefish. Japan, National Cooperative Association of Squid Processors. 2000, p. 140-141.

Sasaki J. Ishita K. Takaya Y. Uchisawa H. Matsue H. ANTI-TUMOR ACTIVITY OF SQUID INK. Journal of Nutritional Science & Vitaminology. 43(4):455-461, 1997 Aug.Abstract

Philippine Fisheries Statistics
Philippine Fisheries Profile
Philipine Natural Resources Statistics, vol. IV: Fisheries. Manila: Natural Resources Management Center. Ministry of Natural Resources. 99p