Mahanine, A dietary phytochemical, represses mammary tumor burden in rat and inhibits subtype regardless breast cancer progression through suppressing self-renewal of breast cancer stem cells

Chemopreventive potential of hydroethanolic Murraya koenigii leaves extract against DMBA induced breast carcinogenesis: In-silico and in-vivo study

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Murraya koenigii (MK), a member of the Rutaceae family and widely known as the curry-leaf tree, is indigenous to India, Sri Lanka, and other south Asian nations. It is a renowned medicinal herb because of the wide range of bioactive components found in its leaves, such as girinimbine, koenimbine, mahanimbine and mahanine among others. All these bioactive components make this plant beneficial for treating a variety of ailments and diseases. Biological and pharmacological activities of MK include anti-oxidant, anti-microbial, anti-ulcer, anti-helminthic, anti-malarial, anti-trichomonal, hepatoprotective, anti-diabetic, etc. AIM OF THE STUDY: The present study aimed to evaluate the possible protective effect of hydroethanolic Murraya koenigii leaves extract (HEMKLE) against 7,12-Dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA)-induced breast cancer in rats, which further paves the way for future breast cancer treatment.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

For the preparation of hydroethanolic Murraya koenigii leaves extract (HEMKLE), Murraya koenigii (MK) leaves were taken from the botanical garden of the Panjab University campus, Chandigarh, and authenticated from the Department of Botany, Panjab University (accession number 22417). The phytochemical characterization of HEMKLE was performed using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Following this, an in-silico molecular docking analysis was performed using Maestro Schrodinger software, and an in-vivo study was conducted. For the in-vivo study, female SD rats were divided into four different groups. Group I (C), Group II (DMBA), Group III (HEMKLE), and Group IV (HEMKLE + DMBA). Histopathogy, oxidative and antioxidant status, immunohistochemistry of estrogen receptor-α, TUNEL assays, mRNA and protein expression of apoptotic pathway genes were conducted in in-vivo study.

RESULTS

In LC-MS, major phytochemical constituents including flavonoids and carbazole alkaloids were identified. In-silico docking study revealed the strong binding affinity between the identified compounds with caspase-3. Additionally, koenine displayed the highest binding affinity/minimum energy of -9.21 kcal/mol with 6BDV as compared to other phytochemicals. Furthermore, in-vivo experimentation revealed that HEMKLE administration in Group IV(HEMKLE + DMBA) significantly inhibits the tumor incidence and volume as compared to alone DMBA treated group. The antioxidant action of HEMKLE was proven from the in-vivo analysis of antioxidant marker enzymes, histopathology, immunohistochemistry of ER-α studies. Further, increase number of TUNEL positive cells was observed in co-treated animals as compared to alone DMBA treated animals. In Group IV (HEMKLE + DMBA), upregulated expression of pro-apoptotic genes and downregulated expression of anti-apoptotic gene were observed when compared to Group II(DMBA) suggested the apoptotic effect of HEMKLE.

CONCLUSION

The results of the present study provide clear evidence of the chemopreventive capabilities of HEMKLE in rats with DMBA-induced breast cancer. The observed outcomes could potentially be attributed to the existence of diverse phytochemicals within the HEMKLE.

Mahanine mediated therapeutic inhibition of estrogen receptor-α and CDK4/6 expression, decipher the chemoprevention-signaling cascade in preclinical model of breast cancer

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Mahanine (MH), a naturally occurring carbazole alkaloid, isolated from Ayurvedic medicinal plant Murraya koenigii (L.) Spreng, has been shown to have various pharmacological properties, including its inhibitory activity against different breast cancers (BC) subtypes.

AIM OF THE STUDY

While MH triggers apoptosis in BC cells regardless of subtype, the specific mechanism of MH action is not fully understood. In this study, we show the effect of MH in preventing BC progression by inducing apoptosis in relation to estrogen receptor-α (ERα) and cell cycle regulatory proteins.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

To assess the pharmacological activity in various in vitro and in vivo tests, isolated and pure MH was used. To conclude the study, cutting edged molecular biology techniques including Western blot analysis, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), molecular simulation study, and other related software analysis were employed.

RESULTS

MH demonstrated dose dependent cell viability against drug sensitive (MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231) and paclitaxel resistant (MCF-7TR and MDA-MB-231TR) BC cells. MH also exhibited synergistic activity with tamoxifen (TAM) against estrogen receptor positive (ER+) BC cells by inhibiting ERα expression in MCF-7 cells and N-Methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU)-induced mammary tumor in a dose-dependent manner while having no effect on vinculin expression. In addition, MH inhibited cell cycle regulatory genes namely CDK1/CDK4/CDK6/CDC25A and neo-angiogenesis through downregulation of CD31/PECAMs in MCF-7, MDA-MB-231 cells and mammary tumors from MNU-induced rats. MH therapy has been shown to be significantly able to lower the serum leptin level and to be beneficial against the initiation of tumor development in SD rats for up to 12 weeks. Molecular modeling study revealed that MH has antagonized the effectiveness of several types of estrogen those bind to the ERα and has comparable binding efficacy to TAM.

CONCLUSION

Overall, the current investigation showed the ability of MH to modify cell cycle genes especially CDK4 and CDK6 might be responsible for its anticancer activity against different breast cancer subtypes. Additionally, this study will aid in advancing MH translational research to the clinical trial stage.

Phytometabolites as modulators of breast cancer: a comprehensive review of mechanistic insights

Breast cancer (BC) is a highly debilitating malignancy affecting females globally and imposing a substantial burden on healthcare systems in both developed and developing nations. Despite the application of conventional therapeutic modalities such as chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and hormonal intervention, BC frequently exhibits resistance, necessitating the urgent development of novel, cost-effective, and accessible treatment strategies. In this context, there is a growing scientific interest in exploring the pharmacological potential of chemical compounds derived from botanical sources, which often exhibit notable biological activity. Extensive in vitro and in vivo investigations have revealed the capacity of these compounds, referred to as phytochemicals, to attenuate the metastatic cascade and reduce the risk of cancer dissemination. These phytochemicals exert their effects through modulation of key molecular and metabolic processes, including regulation of the cell cycle, induction of apoptotic cell death, inhibition of angiogenesis, and suppression of metastatic progression. To shed light on the latest advancements in this field, a comprehensive review of the scientific literature has been conducted, focusing on secondary metabolite agents that have recently been investigated and have demonstrated promising anticancer properties. This review aims to delineate their underlying mechanisms of action and elucidate the associated signaling pathways, thereby contributing to a deeper understanding of their therapeutic potential in the context of BC management.

Garcinone E suppresses breast cancer growth and metastasis by modulating tumor-associated macrophages polarization via STAT6 signaling

Cancer metastasis remains the most common cause of death in breast cancer patients. Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer. Despite the good anti-cancer activity of garcinone E (GE), there are no reports on its therapeutic effects on breast cancer metastasis. The objective of this study was to examine the anti-cancer effects of GE on metastatic breast cancer. RAW 264.7 and THP-1 cells were polarized to M2 macrophages by IL-4/IL-13 in vitro. A 4T1 mouse breast cancer model and the tail vein breast cancer metastasis model were used to explore the effect of GE on breast cancer growth and metastasis in vivo. In vitro studies showed that GE dose-dependently suppressed IL-4 + IL-13-induced expression of CD206 in both RAW 264.7 cells and differentiated THP-1 macrophages. However, GE did not affect the LPS + IFN-γ-induced polarization to the M1-like macrophages in vitro. GE inhibited the expression of the M2 macrophage specific genes in RAW 264.7 cells, and simultaneously impaired M2 macrophage-induced breast cancer cell proliferation and migration, and angiogenesis. In animal studies, GE significantly suppressed tumor growth, angiogenesis, and lung metastasis in 4T1 tumor-bearing mice, without causing toxicity. In both tumor and lung tissues, the proportion of M2-like TAMs was significantly decreased while the proportion of M1-like TAMs was markedly increased by GE treatment. Mechanistically, GE inhibited phosphorylation of STAT6 in vitro and in vivo. Our results demonstrate for the first time that GE suppresses breast cancer growth and pulmonary metastasis by modulating M2-like macrophage polarization through the STAT6 signaling pathway.

OXPHOS inhibitors, metabolism and targeted therapies in cancer

More and more studies highlight the complex metabolic characteristics and plasticity of cancer cells. To address these specificities and explore the associated vulnerabilities, new metabolism-targeting therapeutic strategies are being developed. It is more and more accepted that cancer cells do not produce their energy only from aerobic glycolysis, as some subtypes strongly rely on mitochondrial respiration (OXPHOS). This review focuses on classical and promising OXPHOS inhibitors (OXPHOSi), unravelling their interest and modes of actions in cancer, particularly in combination with other strategies. Indeed, in monotherapy, OXPHOSi display limited efficiency as they mostly trigger cell death in cancer cell subtypes that strongly depend on mitochondrial respiration and are not able to shift to other metabolic pathways to produce energy. Nevertheless, they remain very interesting in combination with conventional therapeutic strategies such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy, increasing their anti-tumoral actions. In addition, OXPHOSi can be included in even more innovative strategies such as combinations with other metabolic drugs or immunotherapies.

Chemical composite of indigenous whole grain scented joha rice varietal prevents type 2 diabetes in rats through ameliorating insulin sensitization by the IRS-1/AKT/PI3K signalling cascade

Preventive measures to lower the prevalence of type-2 diabetes development using dietary phytochemicals are most realistic. A phytochemical composite derived from whole grain scented joha rice (PCKJ), which is indigenous to the North-eastern Region, India, was investigated to understand its preventive efficacy in rats in which type 2 diabetes was induced using a high-fat high-fructose (HFHF) diet and a low dose of streptozotocin, and the findings were correlated with those in L6-myotubes. Studies on cultured L6 myotubes revealed that treatment with PCKJ facilitated glucose uptake and GLUT-4 translocation to the plasma membrane, as evidenced by confocal microscopy and/or cell fractionation studies. Furthermore, the FFA-induced L6 myotubes were identified as having elevated levels of PI3K, p-AKT (Ser473) and GLUT-4, which returned to the basal level upon exposure to PCKJ. The administration of PCKJ (100 mg per kg body weight, oral gavage, 24 weeks) to rats significantly reduced their blood glucose levels along with common lipid and liver biomarkers (LDL, triglycerides, cholesterol, ALT, and AST) compared to the control group. Moreover, immunoblotting analysis showed that upon PCKJ treatment, PI3K, p-AKT and GLUT-4 levels are upregulated in the skeletal tissue of HFHF-fed rats, similar to the in vitro model. The alteration in the levels of inflammatory cytokines IL-6, IL-10 and IFN-γ in diabetic rats returned to normal levels upon exposure to PCKJ. Histological analysis of vital tissues further strengthens the findings of the preventive value of PCKJ against the development of insulin resistance. In conclusion, this study showed the prophylactic effect of PCKJ as a potent chemical composite, which can be used to develop functional foods (nutraceuticals) for ameliorating type-2 diabetes by improving insulin sensitization and thereby glucose metabolism.

Targeting Breast Cancer-Derived Stem Cells by Dietary Phytochemicals: A Strategy for Cancer Prevention and Treatment

Breast cancer is heterogeneous disease with variable prognosis and therapeutic response. Approximately, 70% of diagnosed breast cancer represents the luminal A subtype. This subpopulation has a fair prognosis with a lower rate of relapse than the other clinical subtypes. Acquisition of stemness in luminal A subtype modifies the phenotype plasticity to accomplish increased aggressiveness and therapeutic resistance. Therefore, targeting luminal A-derived breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs) could be a promising strategy for its prevention and treatment. Extensive studies reveal that dietary phytochemicals have the potential to target BCSCs by modulating the molecular and signal transduction pathways. Dietary phytochemicals alone or in combination with standard therapeutic modalities exert higher efficacy in targeting BCSCs through changes in stemness, self-renewal properties and hypoxia-related factors. These combinations offer achieving higher radio- and chemo- sensitization through alteration in the key signaling pathways such as AMPK, STAT3, NF-ĸB, Hedgehog, PI3K/Akt/mTOR, Notch, GSK3β, and Wnt related to cancer stemness and drug resistance. In this review, we highlight the concept of targeting luminal A-derived BCSCs with dietary phytochemicals by summarizing the pathways and underlying mechanism(s) involved during therapeutic resistance.

Dietary phytochemicals/nutrients as promising protector of breast cancer development: a comprehensive analysis

Genetic change, particularly epigenetic alteration, is one of the imperative factors for sporadic breast cancer development in the worldwide population of women. The DNA methylation process is essential and natural for human cellular renewal and tissue homeostasis, but its dysregulation contributes to many pathological changes, including breast tumorigenesis. Chemopreventive agents mainly protect the abnormal DNA methylation either by hindering the division of pre-malignant cells or looming the DNA damage, which leads to malignancy. The present review article is about understanding the potential role of dietary phytochemicals in breast cancer prevention. Accordingly, a literature search of the published article until August 2021 has been performed. Further, we have investigated the binding affinity of different phytochemicals isolated from diverse dietary sources against the various oncogenic proteins related to breast cancer initiation to understand the common target(s) in breast cancer prevention mechanisms. Various small phytochemicals, especially dietary phytochemicals including sulforaphane, mahanine, resveratrol, linolenic acid, diallyl sulfide, benzyl/phenethyl isothiocyanate, etc. are being investigated as the chemopreventive agent to manage breast cancer development, and some of them have shown promising outcomes in the cited research. In this present review, we discuss the recent advancement in acceptance of such types of potential dietary phytochemicals as a chemopreventive agent against breast cancer development and their inner lining mechanism. The critical clinical trials and cohort studies have also been considered to understand the progress in contemporary perspectives.

Design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of tetrahydro-αcarbolines as Akt1 inhibitors that inhibit colorectal cancer cells proliferation

A series of densely functionalized THαCs were designed and synthesized as Akt1 inhibitors. Organocatalytic [3+3] annulation between indolin-2-imines 1 and nitroallylic acetates 2 provided rapid access to this pharmacologically interesting framework. In vitro kinase inhibitory abilities and cytotoxicity assays revealed that compound 3af was the most potent Akt1 inhibitor, and mechanistic study indicated that compound 3af suppressed the proliferation of colorectal cancer cells via inducing apoptosis and autophagy. Molecular docking suggested that the indole fragment of 3af was inserted into the hydrophobic pocket of Akt1 protein, and the H-bond between 3af and residue Lys179 also contributed to the stable binding. This article provides an efficient strategy to design and synthesize biologically important compounds as novel Akt1 inhibitors.

Cytotoxicity of Mahanimbine from Curry Leaves in Human Breast Cancer Cells (MCF-7) via Mitochondrial Apoptosis and Anti-Angiogenesis

Mahanimbine (MN) is a carbazole alkaloid present in the leaves of Murraya koenigii, which is an integral part of medicinal and culinary practices in Asia. In the present study, the anticancer, apoptotic and anti-invasive potential of MN has been delineated in vitro. Apoptosis cells determination was carried out utilizing the acridine orange/propidium iodide double fluorescence test. During treatment, caspase-3/7,-8, and-9 enzymes and mitochondrial membrane potentials (Δψm) were evaluated. Anti-invasive properties were tested utilizing a wound-healing scratch test. Protein and gene expression studies were used to measure Bax, Bcl2, MMP-2, and -9 levels. The results show that MN could induce apoptosis in MCF-7 cells at 14 µM concentration IC₅₀. MN-induced mitochondria-mediated apoptosis, with loss in Δψm, regulation of Bcl2/Bax, and accumulation of ROS (p ≤ 0.05). Caspase-3/7 and -9 enzyme activity were detected in MCF-7 cells after 24 and 48 h of treatment with MN. The anti-invasive property of MN was shown by inhibition of wound healing at the dose-dependent level and significantly suppressed mRNA and protein expression on MMP-2 and -9 in MCF-7 cells treated with a sub-cytotoxic dose of MN. The overall results indicate MN is a potential therapeutic compound against breast cancer as an apoptosis inducer and anti-invasive agent.

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of novel 1,3,4,9-tetrahydropyrano[3,4-b]indoles as potential treatment of triple negative breast cancer by suppressing PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) represents a subset of breast cancer characterized by high aggressiveness and poor prognosis. Currently, there is no curative therapeutic regimen for TNBC patients. In this study, molecular hybridization strategy is adopted by combining benzopyran and indole pharmacophores together, and a library of structurally simple 1,3,4,9-tetrahydropyrano[3,4-b]indoles was rapidly constructed. The structure-activity relationship studies indicated that compound 23 exhibited the most potent effect against the MDA-MB-231 cells with IC50 value of 2.29 μM. Mechanistic studies revealed that compound 23 inhibited cell proliferation via arresting cell cycle at G0/G1 phase. It induced cell apoptosis by disruption of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), reduction of glutathione (GSH), elevation of intracellular calcium ion (Ca2+) and activation of caspase cascade. Furthermore, compound 23 significantly inhibited the regulators of PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway in MDA-MB-231 cells, suggesting that PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway was involved in the 23-mediated apoptosis. To our knowledge, this is the first example of the anti-cancer activity study of indole-fused pyrans through suppressing PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway. Overall, the current study suggested that compound 23 would serve as a promising lead compound for TNBC treatment.

Natural Bioactive Compounds Targeting Epigenetic Pathways in Cancer: A Review on Alkaloids, Terpenoids, Quinones, and Isothiocyanates

Cancer is one of the most complex and systemic diseases affecting the health of mankind, causing major deaths with a significant increase. This pathology is caused by several risk factors, of which genetic disturbances constitute the major elements, which not only initiate tumor transformation but also epigenetic disturbances which are linked to it and which can induce transcriptional instability. Indeed, the involvement of epigenetic disturbances in cancer has been the subject of correlations today, in addition to the use of drugs that operate specifically on different epigenetic pathways. Natural molecules, especially those isolated from medicinal plants, have shown anticancer effects linked to mechanisms of action. The objective of this review is to explore the anticancer effects of alkaloids, terpenoids, quinones, and isothiocyanates.

The anticancer activity of carbazole alkaloids

Chemotherapy is the first choice for the majority of cancers, but severe side effects and drug resistance restrict the actual clinical efficacy. Carbazole alkaloids, mainly from the Rutaceae family, possess favorable donor ability, good planarity, rich photophysical properties, and excellent biocompatibility. Carbazole alkaloids could not only intercalate in DNA but could also inhibit telomerase and topoisomerase and regulate protein phosphorylation. Hence, carbazole alkaloids are useful in providing lead hits/candidates for the development of novel anticancer agents. This review summarizes the research progress made regarding the anticancer properties of carbazole alkaloids, covering articles published from January 2010 to June 2021.

Effect of multiple doses of N-methyl-N-nitrosourea, an end product of methylguanidine (found in processed food), on the fertility of female Swiss albino mice

Methylguanidine, an originator of carcinogenic methylnitrosourea, has been found in many animal meats and processed stored food often in high concentration. The present study was designed to understand the multiple dose effect of N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU), an end product of methylguanidine, in Swiss albino mice fertility as well as cancer induction. Accordingly, a total of five experimental groups of animal (female Swiss albino mice) were taken, considering group-I as vehicle control and group-II-V as treatment groups (whereas group-II-Vwere treated with single to quadruple doses of 50 mg/kg of MNU respectively in a three weeks interval). After accomplishment of MNU injection, each female mice was mated with male mice to check the fertility efficiency. The results of the study indicated that, mice treated with highest number of MNU doses were 42.85% less efficient in getting pregnant than the control mice. There were noted changes in body weight, food and water intake upon MNU-exposure compared to control group. A significant increase in cumulative weight of vital female organs like uterus and ovary were also observed in mice injected with quadruple doses of MNU (50 mg/kg) compared to control mice. The findings of the study suggest the direct effect of MNU in pregnancy, without any cancer incidence in the vital female organs of Swiss albino mice.

Reprogramming Cancer Stem-like Cells with Nanoforskolin Enhances the Efficacy of Paclitaxel in Targeting Breast Cancer

Cancer stem-like cells (CSCs) have emerged as an important target for breast cancer therapy owing to their self-renewability, proliferation, and elevated chemoresistance properties. Here, we present a strategy of eliminating CSCs by differentiation therapy where "forced differentiation" reprograms CSCs so that they lose their intrinsic properties and become susceptible for conventional chemotherapeutic drugs. In this study, we report that a conventional chemotherapeutic paclitaxel enhances the stemness of CSCs, while a phytochemical forskolin being essentially nontoxic to CSCs possesses the intrinsic ability to reprogram them. To achieve simultaneous targeting of CSCs and bulk tumor cells, we used a co-delivery system where liquid crystal nanoparticles (LCN) were co-encapsulated with both paclitaxel and forskolin. LCN showed higher uptake, retention, and penetration potential in CSCs overcoming their high drug efflux property. Moreover, LCN improved the pharmacokinetic parameters of forskolin, which otherwise had very low retention and bioavailability. Forskolin-loaded LCN forced CSCs to exit from their mesenchymal state, which reduced their stemness and chemosensitized them while inhibiting E-cadherin-mediated survival and tumor-initiating potential as well as reversing paclitaxel-induced stemness. We further showed that upon administration of paclitaxel and forskolin co-loaded LCN to an orthotropic xenograft mouse model, the nanomedicine showed enhanced passive tumor targeting capability with very potent antitumor activity that eradicated small solid tumor in a single dose and showed no sign of tumor relapse or systemic toxicity over a long period. Overall, these findings give a proof of concept that co-delivery of forskolin and paclitaxel in a single nanoformulation can achieve overall tumor targeting where forskolin can efficiently reprogram/differentiate CSCs and paclitaxel can induce cytotoxicity in both differentiated CSCs and bulk tumor cells simultaneously. Hence, this study can provide a nanoformulation that can offer an efficient strategy for cancer therapy.

A Review of the Anti-Cancer Potential of Murraya koenigii (Curry Tree) and Its Active Constituents

Murraya koenigii (MK) relates to the Rutaceae family and has many health benefits. To date, over eighty-eight carbazole alkaloids along with terpenoids, and other nutrients have been identified from different parts of this plant. This review presents accumulated information regarding the role of MK and its constituents in the prevention/treatment of cancer. Literature survey revealed that MK and its constituents target multiple deranged pathways associated with apoptosis, growth (JAK-STAT, mTOR), and cell cycle in a variety of cancerous cell lines (colon, lung, liver, skin, prostate, breast, etc.) and few animal models. Thus, the present review highlights the anticancer mechanism of MK and its phytoconstituents, and further future perspectives. The ameliorating effects of MK and its phytoconstituents against various cancers warrant its multi-institutional clinical trials as soon as possible. The prospects of relatively cheaper cancer drugs could then be brighter, particularly for the socio-economically feebler cancer patients of the world.

Cryptotanshinone Is a Intervention for ER-Positive Breast Cancer: An Integrated Approach to the Study of Natural Product Intervention Mechanisms

Background: Resistance to endocrine therapy has hampered clinical treatment in patients with ER-positive breast cancer (BRCA). Studies have confirmed that cryptotanshinone (CPT) has cytotoxic effects on BRCA cells and can significantly inhibit the proliferation and metastasis of ER-positive cancer cells.

Methods: We analyzed the gene high-throughput data of ER-positive and negative BRCA to screen out key gene targets for ER-positive BRCA. Finally, the effects of CPT on BRCA cells (MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231) were examined, and quantitative RT-PCR was used to evaluate the expression of the key targets during CPT intervention.

Results: A total of 169 differentially expressed genes were identified, and revealed that CPT affects the ER-positive BRCA cells by regulating CDK1, CCNA2, and ESR1. The overall experimental results initially show that MCF-7 cells were more sensitive to CPT than MDA-MB-231 cells, and the expression of ESR1 was not affected in the BRCA cells during CPT intervention, while the expression of CDK1 and CCNA2 were significantly down-regulated.

Conclusion: CPT can inhibit the proliferation and migration of BRCA cells by regulating CDK1, CCNA2, and ESR1, especially in ER-positive BRCA samples. On the one hand, our research has discovered the possible mechanism that CPT can better interfere with ER+ BRCA; on the other hand, the combination of high-throughput data analysis and network pharmacology provides valuable information for identifying the mechanism of drug intervention in the disease.

Variation in biosynthesis of an effective anticancer secondary metabolite, mahanine in Murraya koenigii, conditional on soil physicochemistry and weather suitability

Murraya koenigii (MK) leaf being a rich source of bioactive secondary metabolites has received inordinate attention in drug development research. Formation of secondary plant metabolite(s) in medicinal plants depends on several factors and in this study the cause of variation in bioavailability and content of a vital bioactive phytochemical, mahanine in the MK leaves from different geographical locations of varying soil properties and weather parameters was determined. Accordingly, MK leaves and soil samples around the plant base in quintuplicate from each site across five states of India at similar time point were collected. Mahanine content was determined and compared among samples from different regions. The quantitative analysis data comprised that MK-leaves of southern part of India contains highest amount of mahanine, which is 16.9 times higher than that of MK-leaves of north-eastern part of India (which measured as the lowest). The results suggested that pH, conductivity and bacterial populations of the soil samples were positively correlated with mahanine content in the MK-leaves. For examples, the average soil pH of the southern India sites was in basic range (8.8 ± 0.6); whereas that of the north-east India sites was in slightly acidic ranges (6.1 ± 0.5) and mean soil conductivity value for the north east India soils was 78.3 ± 16.3 µS/cm against mean value of 432.4 ± 204.5 µs/cm for south India soils. In conclusion, this study proclaims that higher level of bioactive phytochemical, mahanine in MK leaves depending upon geographical location, weather suitability and soil’s physiochemical and microbial parameters of its cultivation sites.

Discovery of hydrazide-based pyridazino[4,5-b]indole scaffold as a new phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) inhibitor for breast cancer therapy

The mono and dialkylation of pyridazino[4,5-b]indole with a set of alkylating agents were achieved. The synthesized pyridazino[4,5-b]indole hits have been evaluated and discovered as a new phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) inhibitor for breast cancer therapy.