Osthole: A Traditional Chinese Medicine for Ocular Anti-Angiogenic Therapy

Anticancer potential of osthole: targeting gynecological tumors and breast cancer

Gynecological tumors, such as ovarian, endometrial, and cervical cancers, alongside breast cancer, represent significant malignancies that pose serious threats to women's health worldwide. Standard treatments, including surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and targeted therapies, are commonly utilized in clinical practice. However, challenges such as high recurrence rates, drug resistance, and adverse side effects underscore the urgent need for more effective therapeutic options. Osthole, a natural coumarin compound derived from Chinese herbal medicine, has demonstrated remarkable antitumor activity against various cancers. Emerging evidence indicates that osthole can inhibit the proliferation, invasion, and metastasis of gynecological and breast cancer cells through various mechanisms, including inducing apoptosis and autophagy, regulating the tumor microenvironment, inhibiting tumor angiogenesis, and enhancing the sensitivity of cancer cells to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. This review highlights the recent advancements in osthole research within the context of gynecological and breast cancers, focusing on its molecular mechanisms, and offers a theoretical foundation for its potential development as an anticancer agent.

Osthole, a Coumarin from Cnidium monnieri: A Review on Its Pharmacology, Pharmacokinetics, Safety, and Innovative Drug Delivery Platforms

Osthole, a coumarin compound mainly derived from Cnidium monnieri (L.), has attracted much interest from the scientific community owing to its multiple therapeutic properties. However, its pharmacological mechanism, pharmacokinetics, and toxicological effects are far from clear. Furthermore, the potential drug delivery platforms of osthole remain to be comprehensively delineated. The present review aimed to systematically summarize the most up-to-date information related to pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, and safety issues related to osthole, and discuss the investigations of novel drug delivery platforms. The information herein discussed was retrieved from authoritative databases, including PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) and so on, reviewing information published up until February of 2024. New evidence shows that osthole induces a sequence of therapeutic actions and has a moderate absorption rate and rapid metabolic characteristics. In addition, this phytoconstituent possesses potential hepatotoxicity, and caution should be exercised against the risk of the drug combination. Furthermore, given its needy solubility in aqueous medium and non-organizational targeting, novel drug delivery methods have been designed to overcome these shortcomings. Given the properties of osthole, its therapeutic benefits ought to be elucidated in a greater array of comprehensive research studies, and the molecular mechanisms underlying these benefits should be explored.

Development of Osthole-Loaded Microemulsions as a Prospective Ocular Delivery System for the Treatment of Corneal Neovascularization: In Vitro and In Vivo Assessments

Osthole (OST), a natural coumarin compound, has shown a significant inhibitory effect on corneal neovascularization (CNV). But, its effect on treating CNV is restricted by its water insolubility. To overcome this limitation, an OST-loaded microemulsion (OST-ME) was created to improve the drug's therapeutic effect on CNV after topical administration. The OST-ME formulation comprised Capryol-90 (CP-90), Cremophor® EL (EL-35), Transcutol-P (TSP) and water, and sodium hyaluronate (SH) was also included to increase viscosity. The OST-ME had a droplet size of 16.18 ± 0.02 nm and a low polydispersity index (0.09 ± 0.00). In vitro drug release from OST-ME fitted well to the Higuchi release kinetics model. Cytotoxicity assays demonstrated that OST-ME was not notably toxic to human corneal epithelial cells (HCECs), and the formulation had no irritation to rabbit eyes. Ocular pharmacokinetics studies showed that the areas under the concentration-time curves (AUC0-t) in the cornea and conjunctiva were 19.74 and 63.96 μg/g*min after the administration of OST-ME, both of which were 28.2- and 102.34-fold higher than those after the administration of OST suspension (OST-Susp). Moreover, OST-ME (0.1%) presented a similar therapeutic effect to commercially available dexamethasone eye drops (0.025%) on CNV in mouse models. In conclusion, the optimized OST-ME exhibited good tolerance and enhanced 28.2- and 102.34-fold bioavailability in the cornea and conjunctiva tissues compared with suspensions in rabbit eyes. The OST-ME is a potential ocular drug delivery for anti-CNV.

UPLC-Q-TOF/MS-Based Metabolomics Approach Reveals Osthole Intervention in Breast Cancer 4T1 Cells

Osthole (OST) is a simple coumarin derivative with pharmacological effects in many types of cancer cells. However, its role and its mechanism of action in breast cancer 4T1 cells remain unclear. In this study, we explored the effects and potential mechanisms of action of OST in 4T1 cells. The MTT, PI, and Annexin V-FITC/PI methods were used to evaluate the effects of OST-treated and untreated 4T1 cells on viability, cell cycle, and apoptosis, respectively. UPLC-Q-TOF/MS combined with multivariate data analysis was used to screen potential biomarkers relevant to the therapeutic mechanisms of OST. Additionally, mTOR, SREBP1, and FASN protein levels were detected using western blotting in OST-treated and untreated 4T1 cells. OST inhibited 4T1 cell proliferation, blocked the cells from remaining in S-phase, and induced apoptosis. In 4T1 cells, OST mainly affected the phospholipid biosynthesis, methyl histidine metabolism, pyrimidine metabolism, and β-oxidation of very long chain fatty acid pathways, suggesting that metabolic changes related to lipid metabolism-mediated signaling systems were the most influential pathways, possibly via inhibition of mTOR/SREBP1/FASN signaling. Our findings reveal biomarkers with potential therapeutic effects in breast cancer and provide insight into the therapeutic and metabolic mechanisms of OST in 4T1 cells.

Clinical Effect of Tongmai Fuming Decoction on Neovascular Ophthalmopathy

Background

The incidence of neovascular eye disease is increasing year by year, seriously threatening human vision health and becoming an urgent public health problem. Tongmai fuming decoction as an experienced prescription can treat ischemic eye disease.

Objective

To investigate the therapeutic effect of Tongmai fuming decoction combined with anti-VEGF therapy on neovascular ophthalmopathy.

Methods

52 patients (62 eyes) with neovascular ophthalmopathy who met the inclusion criteria from January 2018 to July 2020 were randomly divided into the control and observation groups. The control group was given an intravitreal injection of antivascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) drugs once a day combined with on-demand treatment. The observation group was treated with traditional Chinese medicine Tongmai fuming decoction in addition to the treatment of anti-VEGF drugs. The best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was examined before and after treatment, and optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) was used to examine the mean retinal thickness and neovascularization in the macular area. Patients were followed for one year and the number of anti-VEGF injections was recorded.

Results

After treatment, the average thickness of BCVA and macular retina in the two groups significantly improved. The BCVA of the control group was 0.59 ± 0.39 3 months after treatment, and that of the experimental group was 0.42 ± 0.25 3 months after treatment. The average thickness of the macular retina in the control group was 304.8 ± 79.7 3 months after treatment, and that in the experimental group was 267.7 ± 64.6 3 months after treatment; The average number of injections of anti-VEGF therapy in the control group was 2.32 ± 1.15 times, and that in the experimental group was 1.74 ± 0.76 times. There was a significant difference between the two groups.

Conclusion

Tongmai fuming decoction and anti-VEGF therapy have a synergistic effect in the treatment of neovascular ophthalmopathy, which can reduce the treatment times of anti-VEGF drugs.

Design, Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of Novel Osthole-Based Isoxazoline Derivatives as Insecticide Candidates

Natural products are an abundant and environmentally friendly source for controlling plant pathogens and insect pests. Toward the development of new natural product-based pesticides, here, a series of osthole-based isoxazoline derivatives were prepared by [3 + 2] annulation and evaluated for their insecticidal activities and toxicities. The structures of all osthole-based isoxazoline derivatives were characterized by various spectral analyses, and derivative B13 was further confirmed by X-ray crystallography. Among all the osthole derivatives, B2 displayed the most promising growth inhibitory effect on Mythimna separata with a final corrected mortality rate of 96.4% ± 3.3, which was 1.80 times higher than those of both osthole and toosendanin. Derivative B13 displayed the most promising larvicidal activity against Plutella xylostella with an LC₅₀ value of 0.220 mg/mL, which was superior to rotenone. Furthermore, both B13 and B21 also exhibited better control efficacy against P. xylostella than rotenone in the pot experiments. Additionally, the toxicity evaluation suggested that these osthole-based isoxazoline derivatives showed relatively low toxicity toward nontarget organisms. Given these results, osthole derivatives B2, B13, and B21 could be deeply developed as natural insecticidal agents in agriculture.

Computational Screening of the Natural Product Osthole and Its Derivates for Anti-Inflammatory Activity

Osthole (OS) is a natural coumarin with a long history of medicinal use in a variety of diseases, such as itch and menstrual disorders. In recent years, OS has been shown to treat inflammation and reduce the expression and activity of NF-κB, although its mechanism of action is still unclear. Overexpression of inflammatory cytokines can have many negative effects in the body, including inducing preterm labor; thus, the modulation of inflammation by OS and its derivatives may be able to delay preterm birth, increasing neonatal survival rates. The objectives of this study were to screen and identify the derivatives of OS with the highest potential for binding capacity to inflammatory mediators NF-κB, TNF-α, and ERK1, and to measure the drug-like properties of these compounds. GLIDE docking in Schrodinger Maestro software was used to calculate docking scores for a variety of semi-synthetic OS derivatives against three proteins involved in inflammation: NF-κB, TNF-α, and ERK1. Schrodinger Qikprop was also used to measure the pharmaceutically relevant properties of the compounds. The protonated demethoxy osthole 1 showed the highest docking of all the proteins tested, while the deprotonated demethoxy osthole 2 consistently had the lowest scores, denoting the importance of pH in the binding activity of this derivative. The lowest docking was at NF-κB, suggesting that this is less likely to be the primary target of OS. All of the screened derivatives showed high drug potential, based on their Qikprop properties. OS and its derivatives showed potential to bind to multiple proteins that regulate the inflammatory response and are prospective candidates for delaying preterm birth.