Current Drug Targets - Volume 13, Issue 14, 2012

Inflammation is a risk factor for cancer development in several tissues. In the colorectum, inflammatory bowel disease (ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease) is a longstanding inflammatory disease with increased risk for colorectal cancer (CRC). Several molecular events involving in chronic inflammatory process contribute to multi-stage carcinogenesis of CRC in the inflamed colon. They include alterations in producti Read More

The mangosteen fruit (Garcinia mangostana) is a rich source of dietary xanthones with the most prominent being α-mangostin. Dietary xanthones have been reported to have a variety of health promoting properties. Until now, in vivo studies on the pharmacokinetic profile of α-mangostin are limited. For this study we employed an LC/MS/MS assay to determine the pharmacokinetic properties of α-mangostin suspension in cotto Read More

Breast cancer is still the leading cause of cancer deaths among women worldwide and new therapies and drugs are continuously being conceived and explored to better control or even cure this disease. Among the most efficacious low-molecular drugs for the treatment of breast cancer are indole derivatives such as 3,3'-diindolylmethane (DIM), the structurally complex antimitotic vinca alkaloids, and the synthetic receptor ty Read More

Bioactive food compounds (BFCs) exhibit potential anticarcinogenic effects that deserve to be explored. Butyric acid (BA) is considered a promising BFC and has been used in clinical trials; however, its short half-life considerably restricts its therapeutic application. Tributyrin (TB), a BA prodrug present in milk fat and honey, has more favorable pharmacokinetic properties than BA, and its oral administration is also better tolerate Read More

Ent-11α-hydroxy-15-oxo-kaur-16-en-19-oic-acid (5F) is a chemical compound isolated from Pteris semipinnata L (PsL), a Chinese traditional herb. 5F has been known to exert antitumor activity in several kinds of human malignant cancer cells by leading cancer cell to apoptosis. 5F translocated Bax into the mitochondria, down-regulated Bcl-2, activated caspase-9 and caspase-3, released cytochrome c into the cytosol and transl Read More

Plant-derived polyphenols, a prominent class of phytochemicals, are considered important components of human diet. A number of them are known to possess chemopreventive and therapeutic properties against various diseases including cancer. Several studies using cancer cell lines and animal models of carcinogenesis have shown that a wide range of polyphenols possess anticancer and apoptosis-inducing properties. N Read More

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is the fourth most common cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States, suggesting that designing novel therapeutic strategy is required to improve the survival outcome of patients diagnosed with PC. Recently, microRNAs (miRNA) have been found to be involved in the regulation of multiple aspects of tumor development and progression including PC. In this study, we investigate whether miR-34a Read More

Chemoprevention, which is referred to as the use of nontoxic natural or synthetic chemicals to intervene in multistage carcinogenesis has since decades attracted a considerable interest in plant-derived chemical constituents often termed as “phytochemicals” or sometimes as “Nutraceuticals” in case they are derived from dietary sources. A comprehensive search of the literature show that such an interest in n Read More

Despite advances in therapy for many of the most common cancers, advances which have led to corresponding improvements in survival rates, progress on the pancreatic cancer front have been slow and mortality rates remain startlingly high. New therapeutic strategies are needed. Phytochemicals are naturally occurring, plant-based substances that have garnered much interest in the research world for their anti-ca Read More

Nature has been a rich source of therapeutic agents for thousands of years and an impressive number of modern drugs have been isolated from natural sources based on the uses of these plants in traditional medicine. Henna is one such plant commonly known as Persian Henna or Lawsonia inermis, a bushy, flowering tree, commonly found in Australia, Asia and along the Mediterranean coasts of Africa. Paste made from the l Read More

Breast cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death among females worldwide. It signifies a shift from the previous decade during which the most common cause of cancer death was cervical cancer. Current treatment modalities, including surgery, radiotherapy, and adjuvant chemotherapy or hormone therapy, have not been successful enough to impart significant improvement in the morbidity or mortality of Read More

Mitosis is a complex process resulting in division of a cell into two daughter cells, and its failure often results in the death of the daughter cells (via apoptotic, necrotic, or proliferative/senescent death). Many chemicals that inhibit the mitotic process (anti-mitotic drugs) have proven effective for killing cancer cells in vitro and in clinical settings. Among the most studied anti-mitotic drugs are plant-origin natural products including t Read More

Nontoxic naturally occurring compounds, especially those from dietary sources, are receiving increasing consideration for prevention and treatment of diseases including cancer. There is a growing need for innovative anticancer therapies and therefore search for natural compounds with novel biological activities or antineoplastic potential is currently an important area in drug discovery. Support for this interest also c Read More

Many epidemiological studies and a large number of experimental studies using a variety of animal models have observed that consumption or administration of green tea appears to exert cancer chemopreventive activity. Based on the results of numerous laboratory cell culture investigations, several mechanisms have been hypothesized to underlie the anti-cancer activity of green tea catechins, especially that of Read More

The theory of cancer stem cells (CSCs) has provided evidence on fundamental clinical implications because of the involvement of CSCs in cell migration, invasion, metastasis, and treatment resistance, which leads to the poor clinical outcome of cancer patients. Therefore, targeting CSCs will provide a novel therapeutic strategy for the treatment and/or prevention of tumors. However, the regulation of CSCs and its signalin Read More

Ovarian cancer is the leading gynecologic malignancy with more than 22,000 new cases and 15,000 deaths estimated each year. It is usually detected in late stages with poor prognosis due to lack of sufficiently accurate screening tests. Epidemiological studies continue to support the notion that consumption of cruciferous vegetables reduces the risk of ovarian cancer. In the present review article, we describe the anti Read More

Metformin, a widely used anti-hyperglycemic drug in the biguanide class, is currently under investigation for the prevention of cancer. Surprisingly however, considering the time and cost of clinical chemoprevention trials and the current scrutiny of cancer chemoprevention, limited attention has been given to integrating available data, identifying the subpopulations most likely to benefit, or to quantitatively understanding the Read More

Saponins, a major class of natural phytochemicals, hold great promises for being developed into chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic drugs. However, one of the major factors limiting their pharmacological effects in vivo is poor bioavailability. This paper reviews the factors that determine the absorption and bioavailability of saponins including their physicochemical properties, and their absorption and disposition in the gast Read More

The Caribbean tropical tree, Pimenta dioica has been used for a variety of human endeavors, such as in perfumery industry, food spice, as a natural pesticide, and in folk medicine. Discovered in Jamaica during the voyages of Christopher Columbus, the dried unripe berries of P. dioica also known as Allspice can be found in all continents with unique names in over 50 languages. Systematic investigation of aromatic constitue Read More