Ellagic acid modulates cisplatin toxicity in DMH induced colorectal cancer: Studies on membrane alterations

Susceptibility of different mice species to chemical induction of colorectal cancer by 1,2-dimethylhydrazine

BACKGROUND

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a major public health concern. Animal models play a crucial role in understanding the disease pathology and development of effective treatment strategies. Chemically induced CRC represents a cornerstone in animal model development; however, due to the presence of different animal species with different genetic backgrounds, it becomes mandatory to study the susceptibility of different mice species to CRC induction by different chemical entities such as 1,2-dimethylhydrazine (DMH). This study aimed to investigate the induction receptivity of two commonly used mice species, C57BL/6 and BALB/c, to DMH-induced CRC.

METHODS

Both mice species were exposed to weekly intraperitoneal injections of DMH at a dose of 20 mg/kg body weight for 15 consecutive weeks. The response to DMH was evaluated by monitoring body weight gain, daily food intake, and gastrointestinal symptoms. At the end of exposure, histopathology of distal colon dissected from both species was analyzed.

RESULTS

Results revealed that C57BL/6 had a higher response to DMH compared to BALB/c. A significant decrease in body weight gain concomitant with severe diarrhea was observed in C57BL/6 receiving DMH compared to their controls, without any difference in food intake. Histopathology of distal colon revealed aberrant crypt foci and loss of goblet cells in DMH-exposed C57BL/6 mice. On the other hand, BALB/c mice displayed a normal and intact colon, with a normal weight gain pattern, and without any gastrointestinal symptoms.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, C57BL/6 has a higher susceptibility toward chemical induction to CRC; therefore, it can be used to study CRC pathogenesis, prevention, and treatment.

Gum odina prebiotic induced gut modulation for the treatment of colon cancer on Swiss albino mice: By using capecitabine loaded biopolymeric microsphere

A complex illness with a current global hazard, colon cancer has many different manifestations. The efficacy of colon cancer therapy can be affected by the bacteria in the digestive tract. It is hypothesised that novel prebiotics like Gum Odina is emerging as preventative therapy to fight chronic gut illnesses by gut microbiota modulatory therapy when compared to traditional intervention. The first-line chemotherapy drug for colon cancer, capecitabine, lacks a carrier that can extend its half-life. Here, we use the prebiotic gum odina - sodium alginate conjugate to create a capecitabine loaded biopolymeric microspheres, which were previously established as excellent tools for colon cancer therapy. The accelerated stability study exhibited that the alteration in physicochemical properties was found to be negligible. When administered orally to mice with colon cancer, capecitabine raises intra-tumoral capecitabine concentration and slows drug elimination in the blood. Optimized formulation improves anti-tumor immunity over free capecitabine and decrease the tumor volume from 8 ± 6.59 mm3 to 5.21 ± 2.79 mm3. This prebiotics based microsphere combine's gut microbiota manipulation with chemotherapy to offer a potentially effective colon cancer treatment.

Ellagic Acid Prevents α-Synuclein Spread and Mitigates Toxicity by Enhancing Autophagic Flux in an Animal Model of Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurological disorder, pathologically characterized by loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) as well as the formation of Lewy bodies composed mainly of α-synuclein (α-syn) aggregates. It has been documented that abnormal aggregation of α-syn is one of the major causes of developing PD. In the current study, administration of ellagic acid (EA), a polyphenolic compound (10 mg/kg bodyweight), significantly decreased α-syn spreading and preserved dopaminergic neurons in a male C57BL/6 mouse model of PD. Moreover, EA altered the autophagic flux, suggesting the involvement of a restorative mechanism meditated by EA treatment. Our data support that EA could play a major role in the clearing of toxic α-syn from spreading, in addition to the canonical antioxidative role, and thus preventing dopaminergic neuronal death.

A comprehensive review on Ellagic acid in breast cancer treatment: From cellular effects to molecular mechanisms of action

Globally, breast cancer (BC) is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women. Hence, developing a therapeutic plan to overcome the disease is crucial. Numerous factors such as endogenous hormones and environmental factors may play a role in the pathophysiology of BC. Regarding the multi-modality treatment of BC, natural compounds like ellagic acid (EA) received has received increased interest in antitumor efficacy with lower adverse effects. Based on the results of this comprehensive review, EA has multiple effects on BC cells including (1) suppresses the growth of BC cells by arresting the cell cycle in the G0/G1 phase, (2) suppresses migration, invasion, and metastatic, (3) stimulates apoptosis in MCF-7 cells via TGF-β/Smad3 signaling axis, (4) inhibits CDK6 that is important in cell cycle regulation, (5) binds to ACTN4 and induces its degradation via the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway, inducing decreased cell motility and invasion in BC cells, (6) inhibits the PI3K/AKT pathway, and (7) inhibits angiogenesis-associated activities including proliferation (reduces VEGFR-2 tyrosine kinase activity). In conclusion, EA exhibits anticancer activity through various molecular mechanisms that influence key cellular processes like apoptosis, cell cycle, angiogenesis, and metastasis in BC. However, further researches are essential to fully elucidate its molecular targets and implications for clinical applications.