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Natural Products in Cancer

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Bioactives and Nutraceuticals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2023) | Viewed by 5418

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
U.O.C. Microbiology and Virology, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Policlinico Consorziale di Bari, 70124 Bari, Italy
Interests: immunology; microbiology; nutrition; mucosal immunity; nutraceuticals; polyphenols; pathology; obesity; cytokines
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the world, especially in industrialised countries. Cancer development is a consequence of genetic, environmental and dietary factors. A condition of excessive food intake triggers inflammatory processes that can evolve into the development of diseases which, in turn, facilitate the onset of cancer such as colorectal, esophageal, pancreas and stomach whereas in the female the onset of breast, endometrial and ovarian cancer is more frequent. Overnutrition and lifestyle cause an alteration of metabolism due to an established inflammatory status. The immune system continuously exposed to endogenous and exogenous stimuli is responsible for the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines by both innate and adaptive immunity cells. These cytokines such as TNF-a, IL-1b and IFN-g lead to the activation of the NF-kb pathway, thus amplifying the inflammatory response. In addition, an excessive production of nitric oxide and reactive oxygen species is also observed.

In particular, the excessive intake of junk food and low physical activity facilitates the onset of cancer. However, malnutrition is also responsible for tumorigenesis and should be investigated. Finally, the presence of microrganisms and viruses also contributes to cancer development.

Natural products such as dietary fibre, polyhenols and polyunsaturated fatty acids may be useful in preventing the onset of cancer. In this special issue the mechanisms of action due to the intake of natural products and their potential beneficial effects on cancer prevention will be investigated.

Therefore, original article or review articles regarding the signalling pathways, molecular mechanisms and the involvement of immune system in prevention of cancer through intake of natural products are welcome.

Dr. Thea Magrone
Dr. Luigi Santacroce
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • natural products
  • colorectal cancer
  • gastric cancer
  • microorganisms
  • signalling and molecular mechanisms
  • immune system
  • cytokines
  • overnutrition
  • lifestyle
  • gut microbiota

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 7666 KiB  
Article
Boesenbergia stenophylla-Derived Stenophyllol B Exerts Antiproliferative and Oxidative Stress Responses in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Cells with Few Side Effects in Normal Cells
by Min-Yu Lee, Jun-Ping Shiau, Jen-Yang Tang, Ming-Feng Hou, Phoebe Sussana Primus, Chai-Lin Kao, Yeun-Mun Choo and Hsueh-Wei Chang
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(9), 7751; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24097751 - 24 Apr 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1952
Abstract
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is insensitive to target therapy for non-TNBC and needs novel drug discovery. Extracts of the traditional herb Boesenbergia plant in Southern Asia exhibit anticancer effects and contain novel bioactive compounds but merely show cytotoxicity. We recently isolated a new [...] Read more.
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is insensitive to target therapy for non-TNBC and needs novel drug discovery. Extracts of the traditional herb Boesenbergia plant in Southern Asia exhibit anticancer effects and contain novel bioactive compounds but merely show cytotoxicity. We recently isolated a new compound from B. stenophylla, stenophyllol B (StenB), but the impact and mechanism of its proliferation-modulating function on TNBC cells remain uninvestigated. This study aimed to assess the antiproliferative responses of StenB in TNBC cells and examine the drug safety in normal cells. StenB effectively suppressed the proliferation of TNBC cells rather than normal cells in terms of an ATP assay. This preferential antiproliferative function was alleviated by pretreating inhibitors for oxidative stress (N-acetylcysteine (NAC)) and apoptosis (Z-VAD-FMK). Accordingly, the oxidative-stress-related mechanisms were further assessed. StenB caused subG1 and G2/M accumulation but reduced the G1 phase in TNBC cells, while normal cells remained unchanged between the control and StenB treatments. The apoptosis behavior of TNBC cells was suppressed by StenB, whereas that of normal cells was not suppressed according to an annexin V assay. StenB-modulated apoptosis signaling, such as for caspases 3, 8, and 9, was more significantly activated in TNBC than in normal cells. StenB also caused oxidative stress in TNBC cells but not in normal cells according to a flow cytometry assay monitoring reactive oxygen species, mitochondrial superoxide, and their membrane potential. StenB induced greater DNA damage responses (γH2AX and 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine) in TNBC than in normal cells. All these StenB responses were alleviated by NAC pretreatment. Collectively, StenB modulated oxidative stress responses, leading to the antiproliferation of TNBC cells with little cytotoxicity in normal cells. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Natural Products in Cancer)
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20 pages, 4202 KiB  
Article
Antitumoral Activity of Leptocarpha rivularis Flower Extracts against Gastric Cancer Cells
by Nicolás Carrasco, Maritza Garrido, Iván Montenegro, Alejandro Madrid, Ricardo Hartley, Iván González, Mariaignacia Rubilar, Joan Villena and Manuel Valenzuela-Valderrama
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(2), 1439; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24021439 - 11 Jan 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2691
Abstract
Leptocarpha rivularis is a native South American plant used ancestrally by Mapuche people to treat gastrointestinal ailments. L. rivularis flower extracts are rich in molecules with therapeutic potential, including the sesquiterpene lactone leptocarpin, which displays cytotoxic effects against various cancer types in vitro. [...] Read more.
Leptocarpha rivularis is a native South American plant used ancestrally by Mapuche people to treat gastrointestinal ailments. L. rivularis flower extracts are rich in molecules with therapeutic potential, including the sesquiterpene lactone leptocarpin, which displays cytotoxic effects against various cancer types in vitro. However, the combination of active molecules in these extracts could offer a hitherto unexplored potential for targeting cancer. In this study, we investigated the effect of L. rivularis flower extracts on the proliferation, survival, and spread parameters of gastric cancer cells in vitro. Gastric cancer (AGS and MKN-45) and normal immortalized (GES-1) cell lines were treated with different concentrations of L. rivularis flower extracts (DCM, Hex, EtOAc, and EtOH) and we determined the changes in proliferation (MTS assay, cell cycle analysis), cell viability/cytotoxicity (trypan blue exclusion assay, DEVDase activity, mitochondrial membrane potential MMP, and clonogenic ability), senescence (β-galactosidase activity) and spread potential (invasion and migration assays using the Boyden chamber approach) in all these cells. The results showed that the DCM, EtOAc, and Hex extracts display a selective antitumoral effect in gastric cancer cells by affecting all the cancer parameters tested. These findings reveal an attractive antitumoral potential of L. rivularis flower extracts by targeting several acquired capabilities of cancer cells. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Natural Products in Cancer)
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