The depletion of securin enhances butein-induced apoptosis and tumor inhibition in human colorectal cancer

Exploring the mechanism underlying the therapeutic effects of butein in colorectal cancer using network pharmacology and single-cell RNA sequencing data

BACKGROUND

Butein has shown substantial potential as a cancer treatment, but its precise mechanism of action in colorectal cancer (CRC) remains unclear. This study aimed to uncover the underlying mechanisms through which butein operates in CRC and to identify potential biomarkers through a comprehensive investigation.

METHODS

Target genes associated with butein were sourced from SwissTargetPrediction, CTD, BindingDB and TargetNet. Gene expression data from the GSE38026 dataset and the single-cell dataset (GSE222300) were retrieved from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. The activation of disease-related pathways was assessed using Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes, Gene Ontology and differential gene analysis. Disease-associated genes were identified through differential analysis and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA). The protein-protein interaction network was utilized to pinpoint potential drug targets. Molecular complex detection (MCODE) analysis was employed to uncover relevant genes influenced by butein within key subgroup networks. Machine learning techniques were applied for the screening of potential biomarkers, with receiver operating characteristic curves used to evaluate their clinical significance. Single-cell analysis was conducted to assess the pharmacological targets of butein in CRC, with validation performed using the external dataset GSE40967.

RESULTS

A total of 232 target genes for butein were identified. Functional enrichment analysis revealed significant enrichment of signaling pathways, including mitogen-activated protein kinase, JAK-STAT and NF-κB, among these genes. Differential analysis, in conjunction with WGCNA, yielded 520 disease-related genes. Subsequently, a disease-drug-gene network consisting of 727 targets was established, and a subnetwork containing 56 crucial genes was extracted. Important pathways such as the FoxO signaling pathway exhibited significant enrichment within these key genes. Machine learning applied to the 56 important genes led to the identification of a potential biomarker, UBE2C. Receiver operating characteristic analysis demonstrated the excellent clinical predictive utility of UBE2C. Single-cell analysis suggested that butein's therapeutic effects might be linked to its influence on epithelial and T cells, with UBE2C expression associated with these cell types. Validation using the external dataset GSE40967 further confirmed the exceptional clinical predictive capability of UBE2C.

CONCLUSION

This study combines network pharmacology with single-cell analysis to unravel the mechanisms underlying butein's effects in CRC. Notably, UBE2C emerged as a promising biomarker with superior clinical efficacy. These research findings contribute significantly to our understanding of specific molecular mechanisms, potentially shaping future clinical practices.

Chalcones and Gastrointestinal Cancers: Experimental Evidence

Colorectal (CRC) and gastric cancers (GC) are the most common digestive tract cancers with a high incidence rate worldwide. The current treatment including surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy has several limitations such as drug toxicity, cancer recurrence or drug resistance and thus it is a great challenge to discover an effective and safe therapy for CRC and GC. In the last decade, numerous phytochemicals and their synthetic analogs have attracted attention due to their anticancer effect and low organ toxicity. Chalcones, plant-derived polyphenols, received marked attention due to their biological activities as well as for relatively easy structural manipulation and synthesis of new chalcone derivatives. In this study, we discuss the mechanisms by which chalcones in both in vitro and in vivo conditions suppress cancer cell proliferation or cancer formation.

Molecular mechanisms underlying chemopreventive potential of butein: Current trends and future perspectives

Despite extensive efforts, cancer is still often considered as an incurable disease and initiation of novel drug development programs is crucial to improve the prognosis and clinical outcome of patients. One of the major approaches in designing the novel cancer drugs has historically comprised studies of natural agents with diverse anticancer properties. As only a marginal part of natural compounds has been investigated, this approach still represents an attractive source of new potential antitumor molecules. In this review article, different anticancer effects of plant-derived chalcone, butein, are discussed, including its growth inhibitory action, proapoptotic, antiangiogenic and antimetastatic activities in a variety of cancer cells. The molecular mechanisms underlying these effects are presented in detail, revealing interactions of butein with multiple cellular targets (Bcl-2/Bax, caspases, STAT3, cyclins, NF-κB, COX-2, MMP-9, VEGF/R etc.) and regulation of a wide range of intracellular signal transduction pathways. These data altogether allow a good basis for initiating further in vivo studies as well as clinical trials. Along with the efforts to overcome low bioavailability issues generally characteristic to plant metabolites, butein can be considered as a potential lead compound for safe and more efficient cancer drugs in the future.

Butein induces cellular senescence through reactive oxygen species-mediated p53 activation in osteosarcoma U-2 OS cells

Butein is a flavonoid isolated from various medicinal plants. It is known to have different biological activities including anti-inflammation, anti-adipogenesis, and anti-angiogenesis. In the study, we demonstrated the anti-proliferative effect of butein in human osteosarcoma U-2 OS cells. Our data showed that butein significantly suppressed the viability and colony formation ability of U-2 OS cells. Further experiments revealed butein exposure resulted in a cell cycle arrest at S and G2/M phase in U-2 OS cells. Importantly, we found that butein activated the tumor suppressor p53, and trigged a p53-dependent senescence in U-2 OS cells. Knockdown of p53 suppressed the senescence and rescued the viability in butein-treated U-2 OS cells. Furthermore, we observed that butein exposure significantly enhanced reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels in U-2 OS cells. Co-administration of the ROS inhibitor NAC largely abolished the up-regulated p53 protein level, and rescued the suppressed viability and colony formation ability in butein-exposed U-2 OS cells. Taken together, our data proposed the increased ROS by butein exposure activated p53, and the activated p53 was involved in the anti-proliferative effect of butein via inducing senescence in U-2 OS cells. This report suggests that butein is a promising candidate for cancer therapy against osteosarcoma.

PERK/eIF-2α/CHOP Pathway Dependent ROS Generation Mediates Butein-induced Non-small-cell Lung Cancer Apoptosis and G2/M Phase Arrest

Butein, a member of the chalcone family, is a potent anticarcinogen against multiple cancers, but its specific anti-NSCLC mechanism remains unknown. The present study examined the effects of butein treatment on NSCLC cell lines and NSCLC xenografts. Butein markedly decreased NSCLC cell viability; inhibited cell adhesion, migration, invasion, and colony forming ability; and induced cell apoptosis and G2/M phase arrest in NSCLC cells. Moreover, butein significantly inhibited PC-9 xenograft growth. Both in vivo and in vitro studies verified that butein exerted anti-NSCLC effect through activating endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-dependent reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. These pro-apoptotic effects were reversed by the use of 4- phenylbutyric acid (4-PBA), CHOP siRNA, N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) and Z-VAD-FMK (z-VAD) in vitro. Moreover, inhibition of ER stress markedly reduced ROS generation. In addition, in vivo studies further confirmed that inhibition of ER stress or oxidative stress partially abolished the butein-induced inhibition of tumor growth. Therefore, butein is a potential therapeutic agent for NSCLC, and its anticarcinogenic action might be mediated by ER stress-dependent ROS generation and the apoptosis pathway.

Leukemia therapy by flavonoids: Future and involved mechanisms

Flavonoids are a varied family of phytonutrients (plant chemicals) usually are detected in fruits and vegetables. In this big family, there exist more than 10,000 members that is separated into six chief subtypes: isoflavonols, flavonoenes, flavones, flavonols, anthocyanins, and chalcones. The natural compounds, such as fruits, have visible positive effects in regulating of survival involved signaling pathways that performance as the regulator of cell survival, growth, and proliferation. Researchers have established that commonly consumption up flavonoids decreases incidence and development risk of certain cancers, especially leukemia. Flavonoids have been able to induce apoptosis and stimulate cell cycle arrest in cancer cells via different pathways. Similarly, they have antiangiogenesis and antimetastasis capability, which were shown in wide ranges of cancer cells, particularly, leukemia. It seems that flavonoid because of their widespread approval, evident safety and low rate of side effects, have hopeful anticarcinogenic potential for leukemia therapy. Based on the last decade reports, the most important acting mechanisms of these natural compounds in leukemia cells are stimulating of apoptosis pathways by upregulation of caspase 3, 8, 9 and poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) and proapoptotic proteins, particularly Bax activation. As well, they can induce cell cycle arrest in target cells not only via increasing of activated levels of p21 and p53 but also by inhibition of cyclins and cyclin-dependent kinases. Furthermore, attenuation of neclear factor-κB and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 activation, suppression of signaling pathway and downregulation of intracellular antiapoptotic proteins are other significant antileukemic function mechanism of flavonoids. Overall, it appears that flavonoids are promising and effective compounds in the field of leukemia therapy. In this review, we tried to accumulate and revise most promising flavonoids and finally declared their major working mechanisms in leukemia cells.

Butein activates p53 in hepatocellular carcinoma cells via blocking MDM2-mediated ubiquitination

Introduction

In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect of butein on p53 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells and the related molecular mechanisms by which p53 was activated.

Methods

MTS assay and clonogenic survival assay were used to examine the antitumor activity of butein in vitro. Reporter gene assay was adopted to evaluate p53 transcriptional activity. Flow cytometry and western blotting were performed to study apoptosis induction and protein expression respectively. Xenograft model was applied to determine the in vivo efficacy and the expression of p53 in tumor tissue was detected by immunohistochemistry.

Results

HCC cell proliferation and clonogenic survival were significantly inhibited after butein treatment. With the activation of cleaved-PARP and capsase-3, butein induced apoptosis in HCC cells in a dose-dependent manner. The transcriptional activity of p53 was substantially promoted by butein, and the expression of p53-targeted gene was increased accordingly. Mechanism studies demonstrated that the interaction between MDM2 and p53 was blocked by butein and MDM2-mediated p53 ubiquitination was substantially decreased. Short-hairpin RNA experiment results showed that the sensitivity of HCC cells to butein was substantially impaired after p53 was knocked down and butein-induced apoptosis was dramatically decreased. In vivo experiments validated substantial antitumor efficacy of butein against HepG2 xenograft growth, and the expression of p53 in butein-treated tumor tissue was significantly increased.

Conclusion

Butein demonstrated potent antitumor activities in HCC by activating p53, and butein or its analogs had therapeutic potential for HCC management.

Butein inhibits cell proliferation and induces cell cycle arrest in acute lymphoblastic leukemia via FOXO3a/p27kip1 pathway

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a common hematological malignancy characterized by the uncontrolled proliferation of leukemia cells in children. Discovering and developing effective chemotherapeutic drugs are needed for ALL. In this study, we investigated the anti-leukemic activity of butein and its action mechanisms in ALL. Butein was found to significantly suppress the cellular proliferation of ALL cell lines and primary ALL blasts in a dose-dependent manner. It also induced cell cycle arrest by decreasing the expression of cyclin E and CDK2. We also found that butein promoted nuclear Forkhead Class box O3a (FOXO3a) localization, enhanced the binding of FOXO3a on the p27kip1 gene promoter and then increased the expression of p27kip1. Moreover, we showed that FOXO3a knockdown significantly decreased the proliferation inhibition by butein, whereas overexpression of FOXO3a enhanced the butein-mediated proliferation inhibition. However, overexpression of FOXO3a mutation (C-terminally truncated FOXO3a DNA-binding domain) decreased the proliferation inhibition by butein through decreasing the expression of p27kip1. Our results therefore demonstrate the therapeutic potential of butein for ALL via FOXO3a/p27kip1 pathway.

Butein in health and disease: A comprehensive review

BACKGROUND

The risk of suffering from many chronic diseases seems to have made no improvement despite the advancement in medications available in the modern world. Moreover, the use of synthetic chemicals as medications has proved to worsen the scenario due to the various adverse side effects associated with them.

PURPOSE

Extensive research on natural medicines provides ample evidence on the safety and efficacy of phytochemicals and nutraceuticals against diverse chronic ailments. Therefore, it is advisable to use natural products in the management of such diseases. This article aims to present a comprehensive and critical review of known pharmacological and biological effects of butein, an important chalcone polyphenol first isolated from Rhus verniciflua Stokes, implicated in the prevention and treatment of various chronic disease conditions.

METHODS

An extensive literature search was conducted using PubMed, ScienceDirect, Scopus and Web of Science^TM core collections using key words followed by evaluation of the bibliographies of relevant articles.

RESULTS

Butein has been preclinically proven to be effective against several chronic diseases because it possesses a wide range of biological properties, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antidiabetic, hypotensive and neuroprotective effects. Furthermore, it has been shown to affect multiple molecular targets, including the master transcription factor nuclear factor-κB and its downstream molecules. Moreover, since it acts on multiple pathways, the chances of non-responsiveness and resistance development is reduced, supporting the use of butein as a preferred treatment option.

CONCLUSION

Based on numerous preclinical studies, butein shows significant therapeutic potential against various diseases. Nevertheless, well-designed clinical studies are urgently needed to validate the preclinical findings.

Combining fisetin and ionizing radiation suppresses the growth of mammalian colorectal cancers in xenograft tumor models

Fisetin (3,7,3′,4′-tetrahydroxyflavone), which belongs to the flavonoid group of polyphenols and is found in a wide range of plants, has been reported to exhibit a number of biological activities in human cancer cells, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiangiogenic, anti-invasive and antiproliferative effects. Although previous in vitro studies have shown that fisetin treatment increases the apoptotic rate and enhances the radiosensitivity of human colorectal cancer cells, the in vivo effects of fisetin on tumor growth remain unclear. In the present study a murine xenograft tumor model was employed to investigate the therapeutic effects of fisetin in combination with radiation on CT-26 colon cancer cells and human HCT116 colorectal cancer cells. This revealed that intratumoral injection of fisetin significantly suppressed the growth of CT-26 tumors compared with the untreated control group, but had little effect on the growth of HCT116 tumors. However, fisetin in combination with 2-Gy radiation enhanced tumor suppressor activity in murine colon and human colorectal xenograft tumors, as compared with 2-Gy fractionated radiation administered alone for 5 days and fisetin alone. Interestingly, fisetin downregulated the expression of the oncoprotein securin in a p53-independent manner. However, securin-null HCT116 tumors showed only moderate sensitivity to fisetin treatment, and the combination of fisetin and radiation did not significantly suppress securin-null HCT116 tumor growth compared with normal HCT116 tumors. Therefore, the role of securin in mediating the effect of fisetin on colorectal cancer growth warrants further investigation. In conclusion, the results of the current study provide important preclinical data for evaluating the efficacy of fisetin and radiation combination treatment as an adjuvant chemoradiotherapy for human colorectal cancers.

Fluorescence study on the interaction of human serum albumin with Butein in liposomes

The interaction of Butein with human serum albumin in L-egg lecithin phosphatidycholine (PC) liposome has been investigated by fluorescence and absorption spectroscopy. The results of the fluorescence measurement indicated that Butein effectively quenched the intrinsic fluorescence of HSA via static quenching. The Stern–Volmer plots in all the liposome solutions showed a positive deviation from the linearity. According to the thermodynamic parameters, the hydrophobic interactions appeared be the major interaction forces between Butein and HSA. The effect of Butein on the conformation of HSA was also investigated by the synchronous fluorescence under the same experimental conditions. In addition, the partition coefficient of the Butein in the PC liposomes was also determined by using the fluorescence quenching process. The obtained results can be of biological significance in pharmacology and clinical medicine.

Potential of butein, a tetrahydroxychalcone to obliterate cancer

BACKGROUND

Despite the major advances made in the field of cancer biology, it still remains one of the most fatal diseases in the world. It is now well established that natural products are safe and efficacious and have high potential in the prevention and treatment of different diseases including cancer. Butein is one such compound which is now found to have anti-cancer properties against various malignancies.

PURPOSE

To thoroughly review the literature available on the anti-cancer properties of butein against different cancers and its molecular targets.

METHODS

A thorough literature search has been done in PubMed for butein, its biological activities especially cancer and its molecular targets.

RESULTS

Our search retrieved several reports on the various biological activities of butein in which around 43 articles reported that butein shows potential anti-proliferative effect against a wide range of neoplasms and the molecular target varies with cancer types. Most often it targets NF-κB and its downstream pathways. In addition, butein induces the expression of genes which mediate the cell death and apoptosis in cancer cells. It also inhibits tumor angiogenesis, invasion and metastasis in prostate, liver and bladder cancers through the inhibition of MMPs, VEGF etc. Moreover, it inhibits the overexpression of several proteins and enzymes such as STAT3, ERK, CXCR4, COX-2, Akt, EGFR, Ras etc. involved in tumorigenesis.

CONCLUSION

Collectively, all these findings suggest the enormous potential and efficacy of butein as a multitargeted chemotherapeutic, chemopreventive and chemosensitizing agent against a wide range of cancers with minimal or no adverse side effects.