Natural Product Cordycepin (CD) Inhibition for NRP1/CD304 Expression and Possibly SARS-CoV-2 Susceptibility Prevention on Cancers

NRP1/CD304 is a typical membrane-bound co-receptor for the vascular endothelial cell growth factor (VEGF), semaphorin family members, and viral SARS-CoV-2. Cordycepin (CD) is a natural product or active gradient from traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) from Cordyceps militaris Link and Ophiocordyceps sinensis (Berk.). However, NRP1 expression regulation via CD in cancers and the potential roles and mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 infection are not clear. In this study, online databases were analyzed, Western blotting and quantitative RT-PCR were used for NRP1 expression change via CD, molecular docking was used for NRP/CD interaction, and a syncytial formation assay was used for CD inhibition using a pseudovirus SARS-CoV-2 entry. As a result, we revealed that CD inhibits NRP1 expressed in cancer cells and prevents viral syncytial formation in 293T-hACE2 cells, implying the therapeutic potential for both anti-cancer and anti-viruses, including anti-SARS-CoV-2. We further found significant associations between NRP1 expressions and the tumor-immune response in immune lymphocytes, chemokines, receptors, immunostimulators, immune inhibitors, and major histocompatibility complexes in most cancer types, implying NRP1's roles in both anti-cancer and anti-SARS-CoV-2 entry likely via immunotherapy. Importantly, CD also downregulated the expression of NRP1 from lymphocytes in mice and downregulated the expression of A2AR from the lung cancer cell line H1975 when treated with CD, implying the NRP1 mechanism probably through immuno-response pathways. Thus, CD may be a therapeutic component for anti-cancer and anti-viral diseases, including COVID-19, by targeting NRP1 at least.

Comprehensive analysis, immune, and cordycepin regulation for SOX9 expression in pan-cancers and the matched healthy tissues

SRY-box transcription factor 9 (SOX9) (OMIM 608160) is a transcription factor. The expression of SOX9 in pan-cancers and the regulation by small molecules in cancer cell lines are unclear. In the current study, we comprehensively analyzed the expression of SOX9 in normal tissues, tumor tissues and their matched healthy tissues in pan-cancers. The study examined the correlation between immunomodulators and immune cell infiltrations in normal and tumor tissues. Cordycepin (CD), an adenosine analog for SOX9 expression regulation, was also conducted on cancer cells. The results found that SOX9 protein is expressed in a variety of organs, including high expression in 13 organs and no expression in only two organs; in 44 tissues, there was high expression in 31 tissues, medium expression in four tissues, low expression in two tissues, and no expression in the other seven tissues. In pan-cancers with 33 cancer types, SOX9 expression was significantly increased in fifteen cancers, including CESC, COAD, ESCA, GBM, KIRP, LGG, LIHC, LUSC, OV, PAAD, READ, STAD, THYM, UCES, and UCS, but significantly decreased in only two cancers (SKCM and TGCT) compared with the matched healthy tissues. It suggests that SOX9 expression is upregulated in the most cancer types (15/33) as a proto-oncogene. The fact that the decrease of SOX9 expression in SKCM and the increase of SOX9 in the cell lines of melanoma inhibit tumorigenicity in both mouse and human ex vivo models demonstrates that SOX9 could also be a tumor suppressor. Further analyzing the prognostic values for SOX9 expression in cancer individuals revealed that OS is long in ACC and short in LGG, CESC, and THYM, suggesting that high SOX9 expression is positively correlated with the worst OS in LGG, CESC, and THYM, which could be used as a prognostic maker. In addition, CD inhibited both protein and mRNA expressions of SOX9 in a dose-dependent manner in 22RV1, PC3, and H1975 cells, indicating CD's anticancer roles likely via SOX9 inhibition. Moreover, SOX9 might play an important role in tumor genesis and development by participating in immune infiltration. Altogether, SOX9 could be a biomarker for diagnostics and prognostics for pan-cancers and an emerging target for the development of anticancer drugs.

Antiviral Potential of Small Molecules Cordycepin, Thymoquinone, and N6, N6-Dimethyladenosine Targeting SARS-CoV-2 Entry Protein ADAM17

COVID-19 is an acute respiratory disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 that has spawned a worldwide pandemic. ADAM17 is a sheddase associated with the modulation of the receptor ACE2 of SARS-CoV-2. Studies have revealed that malignant phenotypes of several cancer types are closely relevant to highly expressed ADAM17. However, ADAM17 regulation in SARS-CoV-2 invasion and its role on small molecules are unclear. Here, we evaluated the ADAM17 inhibitory effects of cordycepin (CD), thymoquinone (TQ), and N6, N6-dimethyladenosine (m⁶₂A), on cancer cells and predicted the anti-COVID-19 potential of the three compounds and their underlying signaling pathways by network pharmacology. It was found that CD, TQ, and m⁶₂A repressed the ADAM17 expression upon different cancer cells remarkably. Moreover, CD inhibited GFP-positive syncytia formation significantly, suggesting its potential against SARS-CoV-2. Pharmacological analysis by constructing CD-, TQ-, and m⁶₂A-based drug-target COVID-19 networks further indicated that ADAM17 is a potential target for anti-COVID-19 therapy with these compounds, and the mechanism might be relevant to viral infection and transmembrane receptors-mediated signal transduction. These findings imply that ADAM17 is of potentially medical significance for cancer patients infected with SARS-CoV-2, which provides potential new targets and insights for developing innovative drugs against COVID-19.

COVID-19 disease and malignant cancers: The impact for the furin gene expression in susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2

Furin is a proprotein convertase that activates different kinds of regulatory proteins, including SARS-CoV-2 spike protein which contains an additional furin-specific cleavage site. It is essential in predicting cancer patients' susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 and the disease outcomes due to varying furin expressions in tumor tissues. In this study, we analyzed furin's expression, methylation, mutation rate, functional enrichment, survival rate and COVID-19 outcomes in normal and cancer tissues using online databases, and our IHC. As a result, furin presented with biased expression profiles in normal tissues, showing 12.25-fold higher than ACE2 in the lungs. The furin expression in tumors were significantly increased in ESCA and TGCT, and decreased in DLBC and THYM, indicating furin may play critical mechanistic functions in COVID-19 viral entry into cells in these cancer patients. Line with furin over/downexpression, furin promoter hypo-/hyper-methylation may be the regulatory cause of disease and lead to pathogenesis of ESCA and THYM. Furthermore, presence of FURIN-201 isoform with functional domains (P_proprotein, Peptidase_S8 and S8_pro-domain) is highest in all cancer types in comparison to other isoforms, demonstrating its use in tumorigenesis and SARS-Cov-2 entry into tumor tissues. Furin mutation frequency was highest in UCES, and its mutation might elevate ACE2 expression in LUAD and UCEC, reduce ACE2 expression in COAD, elevate HSPA5 expression in PAAD, and elevate TMPRSS2 expression in BRCA. These results showed that furin mutations mostly increased expression of ACE2, HSPA5, and TMPRSS2 in certain cancers, indicating furin mutations might facilitate COVID-19 cell entry in cancer patients. In addition, high expression of furin was significantly inversely correlated with long overall survival (OS) in LGG and correlated with long OS in COAD and KIRC, indicating that it could be used as a favorable prognostic marker for cancer patients' survival. GO and KEGG demonstrated that furin was mostly enriched in genes for metabolic and biosynthetic processes, retinal dehydrogenase activity, tRNA methyltransferase activity, and genes involving COVID-19, further supporting its role in COVID-19 and cancer metabolism. Moreover, Cordycepin (CD) inhibited furin expression in a dosage dependent manner. Altogether, furin's high expression might not only implies increased susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 and higher severity of COVID-19 symptoms in cancer patients, but also it highlights the need for cancer treatment and therapy during the COVID-19 pandemic. CD might have a potential to develop an anti-SARS-CoV-2 drug through inhibiting furin expression.