Ursolic acid derivative FZU-03,010 inhibits STAT3 and induces cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in renal and breast cancer cells

Potential Pharmacological Properties of Triterpene Derivatives of Ursolic Acid

Ursolic acid (UA) and its derivatives have garnered significant attention due to their extensive pharmacological activity. UA is a pentacyclic triterpenoid found in a variety of plants, such as apples, rosemary, thyme, etc., and it possesses a range of pharmacological properties. Researchers have synthesized various derivatives of UA through structural modifications to enhance its potential pharmacological properties. Various in vitro and in vivo studies have indicated that UA and its derivatives possess diverse biological activities, such as anticancer, antifungal, antidiabetic, antioxidant, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and antiviral properties. This review article provides a review of the biological activities of UA and its derivatives to show their valuable therapeutic properties useful in the treatment of different diseases, mainly focusing on the relevant structure-activity relationships (SARs), the underlying molecular targets/pathways, and modes of action.

Potential therapeutic targets of the JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway in triple-negative breast cancer

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) poses a significant clinical challenge due to its propensity for metastasis and poor prognosis. TNBC evades the body's immune system recognition and attack through various mechanisms, including the Janus Kinase 2 (JAK2)/signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) signaling pathway. This pathway, characterized by heightened activity in numerous solid tumors, exhibits pronounced activation in specific TNBC subtypes. Consequently, targeting the JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway emerges as a promising and precise therapeutic strategy for TNBC. The signal transduction cascade of the JAK2/STAT3 pathway predominantly involves receptor tyrosine kinases, the tyrosine kinase JAK2, and the transcription factor STAT3. Ongoing preclinical studies and clinical research are actively investigating this pathway as a potential therapeutic target for TNBC treatment. This article comprehensively reviews preclinical and clinical investigations into TNBC treatment by targeting the JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway using small molecule compounds. The review explores the role of the JAK2/STAT3 pathway in TNBC therapeutics, evaluating the benefits and limitations of active inhibitors and proteolysis-targeting chimeras in TNBC treatment. The aim is to facilitate the development of novel small-molecule compounds that target TNBC effectively. Ultimately, this work seeks to contribute to enhancing therapeutic efficacy for patients with TNBC.

Ursolic acid-downregulated long noncoding RNA ASMTL-AS1 inhibits renal cell carcinoma growth via binding to HuR and reducing vascular endothelial growth factor expression

It has been reported ursolic acid (UA), one of the naturally abundant pentacyclic triterpenes, possesses a wide range of biological activities including anti-inflammatory, anti-atherosclerotic, and anticancer properties. Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is a severe malignancy due to its asymptomatically spreading ability. Our study aimed to investigate the role and molecular mechanism of UA in RCC. RCC cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and angiogenesis were assessed using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide, Transwell, and tube formation assays. Xenograft tumor models were established to confirm the role of UA and long noncoding RNA ASMTL antisense RNA 1 (ASMTL-AS1) in vivo. Expression levels of ASMTL-AS1 and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) were measured using reverse transcriptase quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blot analysis. The interaction probabilities of ASMTL-AS1 or VEGF with RNA-binding protein human antigen R (HuR) were verified by RNA immunoprecipitation experiment. The half-life period of messenger RNA (mRNA) was determined using actinomycin D. UA inhibited RCC cell growth in vivo and tumorigenesis in vitro. ASMTL-AS1 was highly expressed in RCC cell lines. Of note, UA downregulated ASMTL-AS1 expression, and overexpressed ASMTL-AS1 reversed the UA-induced suppression on RCC cell migration, invasion, and tube formation. Additionally, ASMTL-AS1 bound to HuR to maintain the stability of VEGF mRNA. Rescue experiments showed that the suppressed malignancy of RCC cells mediated by ASMTL-AS1 knockdown was counteracted by overexpression of VEGF. Moreover, silenced ASMTL-AS1 inhibited RCC tumor growth and metastasis in vivo. The obtained data suggest UA as a promising therapeutic agent to attenuate the development of RCC via regulation of the targeted molecules.

Ursolic Acid against Prostate and Urogenital Cancers: A Review of In Vitro and In Vivo Studies

Prostate cancer is the second most diagnosed form of cancer in men worldwide and accounted for roughly 1.3 million cases and 359,000 deaths globally in 2018, despite all the available treatment strategies including surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy. Finding novel approaches to prevent and treat prostate and other urogenital cancers effectively is of major importance. Chemicals derived from plants, such as docetaxel and paclitaxel, have been used in cancer treatment, and in recent years, research interest has focused on finding other plant-derived chemicals that can be used in the fight against cancer. Ursolic acid, found in high concentrations in cranberries, is a pentacyclic triterpenoid compound demonstrated to have anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anticancer properties. In the present review, we summarize the research studies examining the effects of ursolic acid and its derivatives against prostate and other urogenital cancers. Collectively, the existing data indicate that ursolic acid inhibits human prostate, renal, bladder, and testicular cancer cell proliferation and induces apoptosis. A limited number of studies have shown significant reduction in tumor volume in animals xenografted with human prostate cancer cells and treated with ursolic acid. More animal studies and human clinical studies are required to examine the potential of ursolic acid to inhibit prostate and other urogenital cancers in vivo.

Renal cell carcinoma management: A step to nano-chemoprevention

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is one of the most common kidney cancers, responsible for nearly 90 % of all renal malignancies. Despite the availability of many treatment strategies, RCC still remains to be an incurable disease due to its resistivity towards conventional therapies. Nanotechnology is an emerging field of science that offers newer possibilities in therapeutics including cancer medicine, specifically by targeted delivery of anticancer drugs. Several phytochemicals are known for their anti-cancer properties and have been regarded as chemopreventive agents. However, the hydrophobic nature of many phytochemicals decreases its bioavailability and distribution, thus showing limited therapeutic effect. Application of nanotechnology to enhance chemoprevention is an effective strategy to increase the bioavailability of phytochemicals and thereby its therapeutic efficacy. The present review focuses on the utility of nanotechnology in RCC treatment and chemopreventive agents of RCC. We have also visualized the future prospects of nanomolecules in the prevention and cure of RCC.

Therapeutic Potential of Ursolic Acid in Cancer and Diabetic Neuropathy Diseases

Ursolic acid (UA) is a pentacyclic triterpenoid frequently found in medicinal herbs and plants, having numerous pharmacological effects. UA and its analogs treat multiple diseases, including cancer, diabetic neuropathy, and inflammatory diseases. UA inhibits cancer proliferation, metastasis, angiogenesis, and induced cell death, scavenging free radicals and triggering numerous anti- and pro-apoptotic proteins. The biochemistry of UA has been examined broadly based on the literature, with alterations frequently having been prepared on positions C-3 (hydroxyl), C12-C13 (double bonds), and C-28 (carboxylic acid), leading to several UA derivatives with increased potency, bioavailability and water solubility. UA could be used as a protective agent to counter neural dysfunction via anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. It is a potential therapeutic drug implicated in the treatment of cancer and diabetic complications diseases provide novel machinery to the anti-inflammatory properties of UA. The pharmacological efficiency of UA is exhibited by the therapeutic theory of one-drug → several targets → one/multiple diseases. Hence, UA shows promising therapeutic potential for cancer and diabetic neuropathy diseases. This review aims to discuss mechanistic insights into promising beneficial effects of UA. We further explained the pharmacological aspects, clinical trials, and potential limitations of UA for the management of cancer and diabetic neuropathy diseases.

Root Bark of Morus Alba L. Induced p53-Independent Apoptosis in Human Colorectal Cancer Cells by Suppression of STAT3 Activity

The root bark of Morus alba L. (MA) used in traditional oriental medicine exerts various bioactivities including anticancer effects. In this study, we investigated the molecular mechanism underlying the methylene chloride extract of MA (MEMA)-induced apoptosis in colorectal cancer (CRC) cells. We observed that MEMA decreased cell viability and colony formation in both HCT116 p53+/+ cells and HCT116 p53-/- cells. In addition, MEMA increased the sub-G1 phase DNA content, the annexin V-positive cell population, and the expression of apoptosis marker proteins in both cell lines, indicating that MEMA induced apoptosis regardless of the p53 status. Interestingly, the phosphorylation level, transcriptional activity, and target genes expression of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) were commonly decreased by MEMA. The overexpression of constitutively active STAT3 in HCT116 cells reversed MEMA-induced apoptosis, demonstrating that MEMA-triggered apoptosis was mediated by the inactivation of STAT3. Taken together, we suggest that MEMA can be applied not only to p53 wild-type CRC in the early stages but also to p53-mutant advanced CRC with hyperactivated STAT3. Even though a wide range of studies are required to validate the anticancer effects of MEMA, we propose MEMA as a novel material for the treatment of CRC.

Nanoformulations of Ursolic Acid: A Modern Natural Anticancer Molecule

Background: Ursolic acid (UA) is a natural pentacyclic triterpene derived from fruit, herb, and other plants. UA can act on molecular targets of various signaling pathways, inhibit the growth of cancer cells, promote cycle stagnation, and induce apoptosis, thereby exerting anticancer activity. However, its poor water-solubility, low intestinal mucosal absorption, and low bioavailability restrict its clinical application. In order to overcome these deficiencies, nanotechnology, has been applied to the pharmacological study of UA.

Objective: In this review, we focused on the absorption, distribution, and elimination pharmacokinetics of UA in vivo, as well as on the research progress in various UA nanoformulations, in the hope of providing reference information for the research on the anticancer activity of UA.

Methods: Relevant research articles on Pubmed and Web of Science in recent years were searched selectively by using the keywords and subheadings, and were summarized systematically.

Key finding: The improvement of the antitumor ability of the UA nanoformulations is mainly due to the improvement of the bioavailability and the enhancement of the targeting ability of the UA molecules. UA nanoformulations can even be combined with computational imaging technology for monitoring or diagnosis.

Conclusion: Currently, a variety of UA nanoformulations, such as micelles, liposomes, and nanoparticles, which can increase the solubility and bioactivity of UA, while promoting the accumulation of UA in tumor tissues, have been prepared. Although the research of UA in the nanofield has made great progress, there is still a long way to go before the clinical application of UA nanoformulations.

Small-Molecule Drug Discovery in Triple Negative Breast Cancer: Current Situation and Future Directions

Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most aggressive subtype of breast cancer, but an effective targeted therapy has not been well-established so far. Considering the lack of effective targets, where do we go next in the current TNBC drug development? A promising intervention for TNBC might lie in de novo small-molecule drugs that precisely target different molecular characteristics of TNBC. However, an ideal single-target drug discovery still faces a huge challenge. Alternatively, other new emerging strategies, such as dual-target drug, drug repurposing, and combination strategies, may provide new insight into the improvement of TNBC therapeutics. In this review, we focus on summarizing the current situation of a series of candidate small-molecule drugs in TNBC therapy, including single-target drugs, dual-target drugs, as well as drug repurposing and combination strategies that will together shed new light on the future directions targeting TNBC vulnerabilities with small-molecule drugs for future therapeutic purposes.

Inhibition or Reversal of the Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition in Gastric Cancer: Pharmacological Approaches

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) constitutes one of the hallmarks of carcinogenesis consisting in the re-differentiation of the epithelial cells into mesenchymal ones changing the cellular phenotype into a malignant one. EMT has been shown to play a role in the malignant transformation and while occurring in the tumor microenvironment, it significantly affects the aggressiveness of gastric cancer, among others. Importantly, after EMT occurs, gastric cancer patients are more susceptible to the induction of resistance to various therapeutic agents, worsening the clinical outcome of patients. Therefore, there is an urgent need to search for the newest pharmacological agents targeting EMT to prevent further progression of gastric carcinogenesis and potential metastases. Therapies targeted at EMT might be combined with other currently available treatment modalities, which seems to be an effective strategy to treat gastric cancer patients. In this review, we have summarized recent advances in gastric cancer treatment in terms of targeting EMT specifically, such as the administration of polyphenols, resveratrol, tangeretin, luteolin, genistein, proton pump inhibitors, terpenes, other plant extracts, or inorganic compounds.

Evaluation of STAT3 decoy oligodeoxynucleotides' synergistic effects on radiation and/or chemotherapy in metastatic breast cancer cell line

Resistance to radiotherapy and chemotherapy has been a major problem of conventional cancer therapies, which consequently leads to cancer relapse and cancer-related death. It is known that cancer stem cells (CSCs) play a key role in therapy resistance and CSC-based targeted therapies have been considered as a powerful tool for cancer treatment. In the current study, we investigated the synergistic effects of suppressing signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT3) function by decoy ODNs on X-irradiation (XI) and methotrexate (MTX) exposure as a combinational therapy in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) MDA-MB-231 cells. Lipofectamine 2000® was used as a transfecting agent and the cells treated with Scramble ODNs (SCR) and decoy ODNs were subjected to irradiation with 2 Gy at single/fractionated (XI group) doses, different concentration of MTX group, and X-irradiation-methotrexate (XI/MTX group). Synergistic effects of STAT3 SCR and decoy ODNs on cells were investigated by cell viability (MTT), cell cycle profile, apoptosis rate, migration, and invasion assays. Statistical analysis of obtained data showed that STAT3 decoy ODNs significantly decreased the cell viability, arrested the growth at G0/G1 phase, increased apoptosis rate, and reduced migrated and invaded cells through transwell membrane, in XI, MTX, and XI/MTX exposed groups. Since STAT3 is a master transcription factor in breast cancer cells stemness, aggressiveness, TNBC's heterogeneity, and therapy resistance; therefore, inhibition of this transcription factor by decoy ODNs could increase antitumor efficiencies of XI and MTX exposure strategies. Accordingly, this method could have the potential to increase the efficiency of combination therapies.

Ursolic acid inhibits the invasiveness of A498 cells via NLRP3 inflammasome activation

Renal cell cancer is a common malignant tumor of the urinary system. Ursolic acid (UA) serves an important antitumor role in certain types of cancer, such as lung cancer, breast cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma; however, to the best of our knowledge, the effect of UA on renal cancer has not yet been investigated. In the present study, A498 cells were treated with different concentrations of UA for 12, 24 and 48 h, and then MCC950, an inhibitor of the NLR family pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) receptor, was added to block NLRP3 signaling. The proliferation of A498 cells was analyzed using an MTS assay and invasiveness was analyzed using a Transwell assay. The expression levels of NLRP3, cleaved caspase-1, IL-1β and MMP-2 were detected using western blotting. The present results demonstrated that the invasiveness of A498 cells was significantly decreased following UA treatment (P<0.05), while expression levels of NLRP3, cleaved caspase-1 and IL-1β were significantly increased, and MMP-2 expression was decreased following UA stimulation (P<0.05). This was reversed by MCC950 treatment (P<0.05), with the exception of NLRP3. In conclusion, the present results indicated that UA exposure decreased the proliferation and invasiveness of A498 cells. Additionally, UA exposure significantly decreased MMP-2 production and induced the activation of NLRP3 inflammasome, which was reversed by MCC950 treatment, indicating that NLRP3 activation may be involved in UA inhibition of A498 cell invasiveness.

Self-assembled amphiphile-based nanoparticles for the inhibition of hepatocellular carcinoma metastasis via ICAM-1 mediated cell adhesion

Nanosized drug delivery systems have emerged to improve the therapeutic performance of anticancer drugs. Here, an amphiphile-based nanoparticle consisting of amphiphilic prodrug N-[3b-acetoxy-urs-12-en-28-oyl]-amino-2-methylpiperazine was developed (UP12 NPs) with uniform sizes (~100 nm), which possessed the advantages of small molecules and nanomedicine. The positively charged UP12 NPs significantly enhanced the cellular drug uptake on HepG2 cells than negatively charged UA NPs. Meanwhile, UP12 and these therapeutic amphiphile-based nanoparticles could induce cell apoptosis more efficiently than that of UA and UA NPs. Moreover, molecular docking demonstrated that the UP12 and intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1) could dock well. UP12 and UP12 NPs significantly decreased the mRNA expression of ICAM-1 and inhibited the migration and adhesion of liver cancer cells (HepG2 cells), which indicated that UP12 might be one of the potential ICAM-1 inhibitors. In vivo, UP12 NPs enhanced tumor accumulation, inhibited tumor lung metastasis and showed good biocompatibility. Overall, UP12 or UP12 NPs could be developed as prospective drugs for cancer metastasis therapy via ICAM-1 mediated cell adhesion. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: In this study, we fabricated the therapeutic amphiphile-based nanoparticles by assembly of ursolic acid piperazine derivative N-[3b-acetoxy-urs-12-en-28-oyl]-amino-2-methylpiperazine (name as UP12 NPs) with low cytotoxicity. UP12 NPs exhibited spherical morphology and uniform sizes. Particularly, these therapeutic amphiphile-based nanoparticles significantly enhanced tumor accumulation and inhibited tumor lung metastases via intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1) mediated cell adhesion.

Breast Tumor Microenvironment: Emerging target of therapeutic phytochemicals

Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most aggressive and challenging form of breast cancers. Tumor microenvironment (TME) of TNBC is associated with induction of metastasis, immune system suppression, escaping immune detection and drug resistance. TME is highly complex and heterogeneous, consists of tumor cells, stromal cells and immune cells. The rapid expansion of tumors induce hypoxia, which concerns the reprogramming of TME components. The reciprocal communication of tumor cells and TME cells predisposes cancer cells to metastasis by modulation of developmental pathways, Wnt, notch, hedgehog and their related mechanisms in TME. Dietary phytochemicals are non-toxic and associated with various human health benefits and remarkable spectrum of biological activities. The phytochemicals serve as vital resources for drug discovery and also as a source for breast cancer therapy. The novel properties of dietary phytochemicals propose platform for modulation of tumor signaling, overcoming drug resistance, and targeting TME. Therefore, TME could serve as promising target for the treatment of TNBC. This review presents current status and implications of experimentally evaluated therapeutic phytochemicals as potential targeting agents of TME, potential nanosystems for targeted delivery of phytochemicals and their current challenges and future implications in TNBC treatment. The dietary phytochemicals especially curcumin with significant delivery system could prevent TNBC development as it is considered safe and well tolerated in phase II clinical trials.

Mifepristone Derivative FZU-00,003 Suppresses Triple-negative Breast Cancer Cell Growth partially via miR-153-KLF5 axis

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is one of the most malignant breast cancers lacking targeted therapeutics currently. We recently reported that mifepristone (MIF), a drug regularly used for abortion, suppresses TNBC cell growth by inhibiting KLF5 expression via inducing miR-153. However, its anticancer efficacy is only modest at high dose. In order to enhance the anticancer activities, a focused compound library containing 17 compounds by altering the sensitive metabolic region of mifepristone has been designed and synthesized. We first tested the cell growth inhibitory effects of these compounds in TNBC cell lines. Among them, FZU-00,003 displayed the most potent efficiency. FZU-00,003 suppresses TNBC cell growth, cell cycle progression and induces apoptosis more effectively than MIF does. Consistently, FZU-00,003 induces miR-153 expression and suppressed KLF5 expression at much lower dosages than MIF does. Furthermore, FZU-00,003 inhibits tumor growth more potently than MIF does. Taken together, the MIF derivative, FZU-00,003 may serve as a better therapeutic compound for TNBC than MIF.

Ilamycin C induces apoptosis and inhibits migration and invasion in triple-negative breast cancer by suppressing IL-6/STAT3 pathway

BACKGROUND

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most aggressive subtype of breast cancer with poor prognosis, and its treatment remains a challenge due to few targeted medicines and high risk of relapse, metastasis, and drug resistance. Thus, more effective drugs and new regimens for the therapy of TNBC are urgently needed. Ilamycins are a kind of cyclic peptides and produced by Streptomyces atratus and Streptomyces islandicus with effective anti-tuberculosis activity. Ilamycin C is a novel compound isolated from the deep South China Sea-derived Streptomyces atratus SCSIO ZH16 and exhibited a strong cytotoxic activity against several cancers including breast cancer cell line MCF7. However, the cytotoxic activity of Ilamycin C to TNBC cells and a detailed antitumor mechanism have not been reported.

METHODS

CCK-8 assays were used to examine cell viability and cytotoxic activity of Ilamycin C to TNBC, non-TNBC MCF7, and nonmalignant MCF10A cells. EdU assays and flow cytometry were performed to assess cell proliferation and cell apoptosis. Transwell migration and Matrigel invasion assays were utilized to assess the migratory and invading capacity of TNBC cells following the treatment of Ilamycin C. The expressions of proteins were detected by western blot.

RESULTS

In this study, we found that Ilamycin C has more preferential cytotoxicity in TNBC cells than non-TNBC MCF7 and nonmalignant MCF10A cells. Notably, our studies revealed the mechanism that Ilamycin C can induce Bax/Bcl-2-related caspase-dependent apoptosis and inhibit migration and invasion through MMP2/MMP9/vimentin/fascin in TNBC by suppressing IL-6-induced STAT3 phosphorylation.

CONCLUSIONS

This study provides the first evidence that Ilamycin C has significant implications for the potential as a novel IL-6/STAT3 inhibitor for TNBC treatment in the future.

STAT3 as a potential therapeutic target in triple negative breast cancer: a systematic review

Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC), which is typically lack of expression of estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), represents the most aggressive and mortal subtype of breast cancer. Currently, only a few treatment options are available for TNBC due to the absence of molecular targets, which underscores the need for developing novel therapeutic and preventive approaches for this disease. Recent evidence from clinical trials and preclinical studies has demonstrated a pivotal role of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) in the initiation, progression, metastasis, and immune evasion of TNBC. STAT3 is overexpressed and constitutively activated in TNBC cells and contributes to cell survival, proliferation, cell cycle progression, anti-apoptosis, migration, invasion, angiogenesis, chemoresistance, immunosuppression, and stem cells self-renewal and differentiation by regulating the expression of its downstream target genes. STAT3 small molecule inhibitors have been developed and shown excellent anticancer activities in in vitro and in vivo models of TNBC. This review discusses the recent advances in the understanding of STAT3, with a focus on STAT3’s oncogenic role in TNBC. The current targeting strategies and representative small molecule inhibitors of STAT3 are highlighted. We also propose potential strategies that can be further examined for developing more specific and effective inhibitors for TNBC prevention and therapy.

Cis-3-O-p-hydroxycinnamoyl Ursolic Acid Induced ROS-Dependent p53-Mediated Mitochondrial Apoptosis in Oral Cancer Cells

Cis-3-O-p-hydroxycinnamoyl ursolic acid (HCUA), a triterpenoid compound, was purified from Elaeagnus oldhamii Maxim. This traditional medicinal plant has been used for treating rheumatoid arthritis and lung disorders as well as for its anti-inflammation and anticancer activities. This study aimed to investigate the anti-proliferative and apoptotic-inducing activities of HCUA in oral cancer cells. HCUA exhibited anti-proliferative activity in oral cancer cell lines (Ca9-22 and SAS cells), but not in normal oral fibroblasts. The inhibitory concentration of HCUA that resulted in 50% viability was 24.0 µM and 17.8 µM for Ca9-22 and SAS cells, respectively. Moreover, HCUA increased the number of cells in the sub-G1 arrest phase and apoptosis in a concentration-dependent manner in both oral cancer cell lines, but not in normal oral fibroblasts. Importantly, HCUA induced p53-mediated transcriptional regulation of pro-apoptotic proteins (Bax, Bak, Bim, Noxa, and PUMA), which are associated with mitochondrial apoptosis in oral cancer cells via the loss of mitochondrial membrane potential. HCUA triggered the production of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) that was ascertained to be involved in HCUA-induced apoptosis by the ROS inhibitors YCG063 and N-acetyl-L-cysteine. As a result, HCUA had potential antitumor activity to oral cancer cells through eliciting ROS-dependent and p53-mediated mitochondrial apoptosis. Overall, HCUA could be applicable for the development of anticancer agents against human oral cancer.

Construction and biological evaluation of different self-assembled nanoarchitectures of FZU-03,010

Chemotherapy is currently one of the promising therapeutic methods for non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but the emergence of multidrug resistance (MDR) is the greatest obstacle to efficient drug delivery for successful chemotherapy. Nanotechnology-based drug delivery holds great promise to promote intracellular drug delivery to reverse MDR. In this work, we used our previously synthesized ursolic acid (UA) derivative, FZU-03,010 (F3), to prepare nanodrugs of F3 with different architectures and study the role of the structure on the physiochemical properties and the biological effects against A549 and its PTX-resistant A549/PTX lung cancer cells. Using different preparation methods, amphiphilic F3 could self-assemble into different structures such as nanoaggregates (F3-NA), vesicles (F3-VC), or nanoparticles (F3-NP) with different physiochemical properties. The self-assembled nanodrugs could be utilized for the entrapment of fluorophores and showed different cellular uptake efficiencies. The cytotoxicity results demonstrated that compared with UA, F3-NA and F3-NP could suppress A549 and A549/PTX cells viability more potently at lower concentration. In addition, F3-NA and F3-NP could induce G1 cell cycle arrest, cell apoptosis and caspase-3 activation more efficiently than that of UA. Furthermore, F3-NA and F3-NP could effectively inhibit PI3K/Akt pathway and decrease the expression of Bcl-2 and the cell cycle-dependent kinase inhibitors p-ERK1/2 and Cyclin D1 in both A549 and A549/PTX cells. In conclusion, our results suggest that the UA derivative F3 is more potent in inhibiting cancer cell proliferation, and F3-NA and F3-NP have the potential to be developed as a therapeutic agent for resistant NSCLC cells.

Downregulation of RPN2 induces apoptosis and inhibits migration and invasion in colon carcinoma

The morbidity of colorectal cancer (CRC) increases annualy, which accounts to higher mortality worldwide. Therefore, it is important to study the pathogenesis of colon cancer. Ribophorin II (RPN2), part of the N-oligosaccharyltransferase complex, is highly expressed in CRC. In the present study, we investigated whether RPN2 can regulate apoptosis, migration and invasion by RNA interference in CRC and sought to clarify the molecular mechanism involved. Based on previous research, an abnormal high expression of RPN2 was observed in CRC tissues and cell lines by real-time (RT)-PCR, immunohistochemistry (IHC) and western blot analysis. RPN2 knockdown via small RNA interference (siRNA) strategy attenuated the expression of RPN2 at the mRNA and protein levels in vivo, leading to decreased cell viability and increased cell apoptosis. In addition, RNAi-RPN2 effectively arrested the cell cycle at the G0/G1-phase in SW1116 and SW480 cells. Furthermore, the Transwell assay demonstrated that cell migration and invasion abilities were significantly inhibited after cell transfection with RPN2 interference plasmid. The apoptosis-related protein (caspase-3) expression was increased and the cell cycle-related protein (cyclin D1) expression was decreased in the siRNA-RPN2 group. RT-PCR and western blot analysis results indicated that migration- and invasion-related proteins including E-cadherin, matrix metalloproteinases (MMP)-2 and TIMP-2 were markedly regulated by RPN2 siRNA. Phosphorylation levels of signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT)3 and Janus kinase (JAK)2 were inhibited by RPN2 siRNA. These findings indicated a novel pathway of tumor-promoting activity by RPN2 in CRC, with significant implications for unraveling the tumorigenesis of CRC.

Ursolic acid in health and disease

Ursolic acid (UA) is a natural triterpene compound found in various fruits and vegetables. There is a growing interest in UA because of its beneficial effects, which include anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-apoptotic, and anti-carcinogenic effects. It exerts these effects in various tissues and organs: by suppressing nuclear factor-kappa B signaling in cancer cells, improving insulin signaling in adipose tissues, reducing the expression of markers of cardiac damage in the heart, decreasing inflammation and increasing the level of anti-oxidants in the brain, reducing apoptotic signaling and the level of oxidants in the liver, and reducing atrophy and increasing the expression levels of adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase and irisin in skeletal muscles. Moreover, UA can be used as an alternative medicine for the treatment and prevention of cancer, obesity/diabetes, cardiovascular disease, brain disease, liver disease, and muscle wasting (sarcopenia). In this review, we have summarized recent data on the beneficial effects and possible uses of UA in health and disease managements.

Discovery of novel mifepristone derivatives via suppressing KLF5 expression for the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is one of the most malignant breast cancers currently with a lack of targeted therapeutic drugs. Accumulating evidence supports that KLF5 represents a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of basal TNBC. Our previous studies revealed that mifepristone is capable of suppressing TNBC cell proliferation and promoting cancer cell apoptosis by inhibiting KLF5 expression. Nevertheless, its anticancer efficacy is only modest with high dose. Moreover, its main metabolite N-desmethyl mifepristone with the removal of one methyl moiety results in a significant loss of antiproliferative activity, indicating an important pharmacophore domain around this methyl moiety. To improve the pharmacokinetic properties including metabolic stability and enhance the anticancer activities, a focused compound library by altering this sensitive metabolic region of mifepristone has been designed and synthesized for scaffold repurposing and structural optimization. Compound 17 (FZU-00,004) has been identified with an attractive anticancer profile against TNBC via suppressing KLF5 expression.