Piplartine (piperlongumine, 5,6-dihydro-1-(2E)-1-oxo-3-(3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)-2-propenyl-2(1H)-pyridinone) is a biologically active alkaloid/amide from peppers, as from long pepper (Piper longum L. ...– Piperaceae). Long pepper is one of the most widely used in Ayurvedic medicine, which is used to treat many diseases, including tumors. The purpose of the current paper is to address to the chemical structure establishment and to systematically survey the published articles and highlight recent advances in the knowledge of the therapeutic potential of piplartine, establishing new goals for future research. The reported pharmacological activities of piplartine include cytotoxic, genotoxic, antitumor, antiangiogenic, antimetastatic, antiplatelet aggregation, antinociceptive, anxiolytic, antidepressant, anti-atherosclerotic, antidiabetic, antibacterial, antifungal, leishmanicidal, trypanocidal, and schistosomicidal activities. Among the multiple pharmacological effects of piplartine, its anticancer property is the most promising. Therefore, the preclinical anticancer potential of piplartine has been extensively investigated, which recently resulted in one patent. This compound is selectively cytotoxic against cancer cells by induction of oxidative stress, induces genotoxicity, as an alternative strategy to killing tumor cells, has excellent oral bioavailability in mice, inhibits tumor growth in mice, and presents only weak systemic toxicity. In summary, we conclude that piplartine is effective for use in cancer therapy and its safety using chronic toxicological studies should be addressed to support the viability of clinical trials.
Pivotal clinical trials of B-cell maturation antigen-targeted chimeric antigen receptor T (CART)-cell therapy in patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (MM) resulted in remarkable initial ...responses, which led to a recent US Food and Drug Administration approval. Despite the success of this therapy, durable remissions continue to be low, and the predominant mechanism of resistance is loss of CART cells and inhibition by the tumor microenvironment (TME). MM is characterized by an immunosuppressive TME with an abundance of cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs). Using MM models, we studied the impact of CAFs on CART-cell efficacy and developed strategies to overcome CART-cell inhibition. We showed that CAFs inhibit CART-cell antitumor activity and promote MM progression. CAFs express molecules such as fibroblast activation protein and signaling lymphocyte activation molecule family-7, which are attractive immunotherapy targets. To overcome CAF-induced CART-cell inhibition, CART cells were generated targeting both MM cells and CAFs. This dual-targeting CART-cell strategy significantly improved the effector functions of CART cells. We show for the first time that dual targeting of both malignant plasma cells and the CAFs within the TME is a novel strategy to overcome resistance to CART-cell therapy in MM.
Cancer is the second most common cause of death in the USA. Among the known classes of anticancer agents, the microtubule-targeted antimitotic drugs are considered to be one of the most important. ...They are usually classified into microtubule-destabilizing (e.g., Vinca alkaloids) and microtubule-stabilizing (e.g., paclitaxel) agents. Combretastatin A4 (CA-4), which is a natural stilbene isolated from Combretum caffrum, is a microtubule-destabilizing agent that binds to the colchicine domain on β-tubulin and exhibits a lower toxicity profile than paclitaxel or the Vinca alkaloids. In this paper, we describe the docking study, synthesis, antiproliferative activity and selectivity index of the N-acylhydrazone derivatives (5a-r) designed as CA-4 analogues. The essential structural requirements for molecular recognition by the colchicine binding site of β-tubulin were recognized, and several compounds with moderate to high antiproliferative potency (IC50 values ≤18 µM and ≥4 nM) were identified. Among these active compounds, LASSBio-1586 (5b) emerged as a simple antitumor drug candidate, which is capable of inhibiting microtubule polymerization and possesses a broad in vitro and in vivo antiproliferative profile, as well as a better selectivity index than the prototype CA-4, indicating improved selective cytotoxicity toward cancer cells.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) represents the third most commonly diagnosed cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death worldwide. The modern concept of cancer biology indicates that cancer is ...formed of a small population of cells called cancer stem cells (CSCs), which present both pluripotency and self‐renewal properties. These cells are considered responsible for the progression of the disease, recurrence and tumor resistance. Interestingly, some cell signaling pathways participate in CRC survival, proliferation, and self‐renewal properties, and most of them are dysregulated in CSCs, including the Wingless (Wnt)/β‐catenin, Notch, Hedgehog, nuclear factor kappa B (NF‐κB), Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK/STAT), peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor (PPAR), phosphatidyl‐inositol‐3‐kinase/Akt/mechanistic target of rapamycin (PI3K/Akt/mTOR), and transforming growth factor‐β (TGF‐β)/Smad pathways. In this review, we summarize the strategies for eradicating CRC stem cells by modulating these dysregulated pathways, which will contribute to the study of potential therapeutic schemes, combining conventional drugs with CSC‐targeting drugs, and allowing better cure rates in anti‐CRC therapy.
CRC represents the third most commonly diagnosed cancer and the second cause of cancer death;
Cell signaling pathways are dysregulated in CRC stem cells;
Cell signaling pathways are target to eradicate CRC stem cells.
Autophagy is a physiological cellular process that is crucial for development and can occurs in response to nutrient deprivation or metabolic disorders. Interestingly, autophagy plays a dual role in ...cancer cells—while in some situations, it has a cytoprotective effect that causes chemotherapy resistance, in others, it has a cytotoxic effect in which some compounds induce autophagy-mediated cell death. In this review, we summarize strategies aimed at autophagy for the treatment of cancer, including studies of drugs that can modulate autophagy-mediated resistance, and/or drugs that cause autophagy-mediated cancer cell death. In addition, the role of autophagy in the biology of cancer stem cells has also been discussed.
•The essential oil contains (E)-caryophyllene as its major component.•The essential oil displays cytotoxicity to tumour cell lines.•The essential oil possesses in vivo antitumour action.
The aim of ...this study was to investigate the chemical composition and anticancer effect of the leaf essential oil of Xylopia frutescens in experimental models. The chemical composition of the essential oil was analysed by GC/FID and GC/MS. In vitro cytotoxic activity of the essential oil was determined on cultured tumour cells. In vivo antitumour activity was assessed in Sarcoma 180-bearing mice. The major compounds identified were (E)-caryophyllene (31.48%), bicyclogermacrene (15.13%), germacrene D (9.66%), δ-cadinene (5.44%), viridiflorene (5.09%) and α-copaene (4.35%). In vitro study of the essential oil displayed cytotoxicity on tumour cell lines and showed IC50 values ranging from 24.6 to 40.0μg/ml for the NCI-H358M and PC-3M cell lines, respectively. In the in vivo antitumour study, tumour growth inhibition rates were 31.0–37.5%. In summary, the essential oil was dominated by sesquiterpene constituents and has some interesting anticancer activity.
Medicinal plants are one of the most important sources of drugs used in the pharmaceutical industry. Among traditional medicinal plants, Lippia gracilis Schauer (Verbenaceae) had been used for ...several medicinal purposes in Brazilian northeastern. In this study, leaf essential oil (EO) of L. gracilis was prepared using hydrodistillation. Followed by GC–MS analysis, its composition was characterized by the presence of thymol (55.50%), as major constituent. The effects of EO on cell proliferation and apoptosis induction were investigated in HepG2 cells. Furthermore, mice bearing Sarcoma 180 tumor cells were used to confirm its in vivo effectiveness. EO and its constituents (thymol, p-cymene, γ-terpinene and myrcene) displayed cytotoxicity to different tumor cell lines. EO treatment caused G1 arrest in HepG2 cells accompanied by the induction of DNA fragmentation without affecting cell membrane integrity. Cell morphology consistent with apoptosis and a remarkable activation of caspase-3 were also observed, suggesting induction of caspase-dependent apoptotic cell death. In vivo antitumor study showed tumor growth inhibition rates of 38.5–41.9%. In conclusion, the tested essential oil of L. gracilis leaves, which has thymol as its major constituent, possesses significant in vitro and in vivo antitumor activity. These data suggest that leaf essential oil of L. gracilis is a potential medicinal resource.
Carvacrol, a phenolic monoterpene derived from thyme oil has gained wide interest recently because of its anticancer activities. To improve the solubility of carvacrol, the formation of inclusion ...complexes with β-cyclodextrin was performed by ultrasound and freeze-drying methods and characterized using thermal analysis, FTIR, XRD, SEM, NMR and HPLC analysis. From these results, carvacrol was successfully complexed within β-cyclodextrin cavity. Moreover, HPLC analysis demonstrated a higher entrapment efficiency for freeze-drying method (81.20 ± 0.52%) in contrast to ultrasound method (34.02 ± 0.67%). Hence, freeze-drying inclusion complex was evaluated for its antiproliferative effect and cytotoxicity against prostate cancer cell line (PC3) in vitro. Further, freeze-drying complex led to a dose-dependent inhibition in tumor cell growth in 2D and 3D cell culture systems. Altogether, the inclusion of carvacrol in β-cyclodextrin led to the formation of stable complexes with potent antiproliferative effects against PC3 cells, in vitro. Such an improved cytotoxic effect can be attributed to the enhanced the aqueous solubility and bioavailability of carvacrol by effective complexation in β-cyclodextrin.
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•CARV/β-CD complexes have been developed to improve the anticancer activity.•The FD method showed high efficiency in the formation of inclusion complexes.•FD complexes enhanced in vitro anticancer activity and cytotoxicity against PC3.•FD complex also reduced the cell viability of PC3 encapsulated in GelMA hydrogels.
In this review, we provide an overview of the current understanding of the main mechanisms of pharmacological action of essential oils and their components in various biological systems. A brief ...introduction on essential oil chemistry is presented to better understand the relationship of chemical aspects with the bioactivity of these products. Next, the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antitumor, and antimicrobial activities are discussed. The mechanisms of action against various types of viruses are also addressed. The data show that the multiplicity of pharmacological properties of essential oils occurs due to the chemical diversity in their composition and their ability to interfere with biological processes at cellular and multicellular levels via interaction with various biological targets. Therefore, these natural products can be a promising source for the development of new drugs.
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