Thymoquinone enhances the antioxidant and anticancer activity of Lebanese propolis

BACKGROUND Reactive oxygen species(ROS)are produced by multiple cellular processes and are maintained at optimal levels in normal cells by endogenous antioxidants.In recent years,the search for potential exogenous antioxidants from dietary sources has gained considerable attention to eliminate excess ROS that is associated with oxidative stress related diseases including cancer.Propolis,a resinous honeybee product,has been shown to have protective effects against oxidative stress and anticancer effects against several types of neoplasms.AIM To investigate the antioxidant and anticancer potential of Lebanese propolis when applied alone or in combination with the promising anticancer compound Thymoquinone(TQ)the main constituent of Nigella sativa essential oil.METHODS Crude extracts of Lebanese propolis collected from two locations,Rashaya and Akkar-Danniyeh,were prepared in methanol and the total phenolic content was determined by Folin–Ciocalteu method.The antioxidant activity was assessed by the ability to scavenge 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl(DPPH)free radical and to inhibit H2O2-induced oxidative hemolysis of human erythrocytes.The anticancer activity was evaluated by[3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5 diphenyl tetrazolium bromide]MTT assay against HCT-116 human colorectal cancer cells and MDAMB-231 human breast cancer cells.RESULTS The total phenolic content of propolis extract from Rashaya and Akkar-Danniyeh were 56.81μg and 83.503μg of gallic acid equivalent/mg of propolis,respectively.Both natural agents exhibited strong antioxidant activities as evidenced by their ability to scavenge DPPH free radical and to protect erythrocytes against H2O2-induced hemolysis.They also dose-dependently decreased the viability of both cancer cell lines.The IC50 value of each of propolis extract from Rashaya and Akkar-Danniyeh or TQ was 22.3,61.7,40.44μg/mL for breast cancer cells at 72 h and 33.3,50.9,33.5μg/mL for colorectal cancer cells at the same time point,respectively.Importantly,the inhibitory effects of propolis on DPPH radicals and cancer cell viability were achieved at half its concentration when combined with TQ.CONCLUSION Our results indicate that Lebanese propolis extract has antioxidant and anticancer potential and its combination with TQ could possibly prevent ROS-mediated diseases.

Purification and Characterization of Cytotoxins from Agkistrodon acutus Venom and Their Anticancer Activity

Aim To investigate the anticancer activity of two new cytotoxins from thevenom of Agkistrodon acutus. Methods The venom was isolated by FPLC column chromatography consistingof DEAE Sepharose FF and Source 30S. The cytotoxic activity on tumor cells was detected by MITmethod. Purity and molecular weight were determined by SDS-PAGE (silver staining). Their stabilitiesto temperature and pH were also detected. Results Two pure cytotoxins named ACTX-6 and ACTX-8 wereobtained. Their molecular weights are 98 kDa and 27 kDa, respectively. ACTX-6 consists of twosubunits bonded together by disulfide bonds. Conclusion ACTX-6 and ATCX-8 have highest inhibitoryactivity on lung cancer cell A549. ACTX-6 is stable to heat while ACTX-8 not. ACTX-6 is stablebetween pH 7-9 and ACTX-8 between pH 6 - 9.

Total synthesis and anticancer activity studies of the stereoisomers of asperphenamate and patriscabratine

All stereoisomers of asperphenamate 1a and patriscabratine 2a were achieved with a high yield,and total synthesis of 2a is firstly described here.The absolute configuration of patriscabratine was determined as(S,S).The compounds 1a-d and 2a-d have been tested by MTT assay in T47D,MDA-MB231,HL60,Hela and SGC-7901 cell lines in vitro.Among them,the(R,S) stereoisomer shows the strongest anticancer effects,while the(S,R) shows the weakest one.

Sulforaphene in Raphanus sativus L. var. caudatus Alef increased in late-bolting stage as well as anticancer activity

Objectives: To evaluate the concentration differences of sulforaphene and sulforaphane at various ages and in different parts of Raphanus sativus L. var. caudatus with respect to their potential cancer preventive effect on HCT116 colon cancer cells.Methods: FTIR–ATR and GC–MS were used to characterize the isothiocyanates in the plant extracts followed by HPLC for quantification. Antiproliferation and apoptosis induction were determined by using MTT assay and flow cytometry, respectively.Results: The respective rank of anticancer activity of Raphanus sativus were as follows:vegetative(3 week) < older rosette(4 week) < early-bolting(5 week) < senescence(7 week) < late-bolting(6 week). The low to high concentration of sulforaphene and sulforaphane occurred in the same stage order.Conclusions: The reproductive parts(flower, pod, and dry seed) of Raphanus sativus have the greatest isothiocyanate concentration, evidenced by a sulforaphene concentration higher than the sulforaphane. This result should inform the selection of the most appropriate harvesting stage and plant part for use as a potential chemopreventive agent.

Comparative Molecular Field Analysis(CoMFA) of Curcumin-related Compounds for Anticancer Activity

Three-dimensional （3D） quantitative structure-activity relationship （QSAR） studies of 44 curcumin-related compounds have been carried out based on our previously reported result for their anticancer activity against pancreas cancer Panc-I cells and colon cancer HT-29 cells. The established 3D-QSAR models from the comparative molecular field analysis （CoMFA） in training set showed not only significant statistical quality, but also satisfying predictive ability, with high correlation coefficient values （R12= 0.911, R22= 0.985） and cross-validation coefficient values （q2= 0.580, q22= 0.722）. Based on the CoMFA contour maps, some key structural factors responsible for anticancer activity of these series of compounds were revealed. The results provide some useful theoretical references for understanding the mechanism of action, designing new curcumin-related compounds with anticancer activity and predicting their activities prior to synthesis.

Anticancer activity of crude acetone and water extracts of Tulbaghia violacea on human oral cancer cells

Objective: To evaluate the anticancer activity of crude acetone and water leaf extracts of Tulbaghia violacea on a human oral cancer cell line(KB).Methods: The antioxidant activity of the leaf extracts was evaluated by using the DPPH assay while the anti-proliferative activity was assessed by using the MTT assay.The morphological characteristics of apoptotic cells were examined by using the dual acridine orange/ethidium bromide staining.Flow cytometry was used to evaluate the induction of multi-caspase activity and changes in the cell cycle.Results: The acetone and water extracts exhibited antioxidant activity in a concentration dependent manner.The extracts inhibited the growth of the KB cell line with IC_(50) values of 0.2 mg/mL and 1 mg/mL, respectively for acetone and water.Morphological changes such as cell shrinkage, rounding and formation of membrane blebs were observed in the treated cells.In acridine orange/ethidium bromide staining, the number of apoptotic cells increased as the concentration of the extracts increased.The activation of multi-caspase activity in KB cells treated with Tulbaghia violacea extracts was concentration dependent, leading to cell death by apoptosis and cell cycle arrest at the G_2/M phase.Conclusions: The acetone and water extracts of Tulbaghia violacea appear to have anti-cancer activity against human oral cancer cells and need to be investigated further.

Potential anticancer activity analysis of piscidin 5-like from Larimichthys crocea

Antitumor activity is one characteristic function of some certain antimicrobial peptides(AMPs)found in recent years.In the present study,we attempted to detect potential anticancer activity of a recombinant piscidin 5-like from Larimichthys crocea(r Lc-P5L)which owned widely antibacterial and strong antiparasitic activity in vitro.The light microscope observation indicated r Lc-P5L was of antitumor activity to He La cells,293 T cells and L929 cells.MTT assay showed the toxic sensitivity of r Lc-P5L to three tumor cell strains was 293 T>L929>He La.Scanning electron microscope(SEM)results showed r Lc-P5L behaved like a lytic peptide to cause damage on cells membrane of L929 cells by forming globular clusters,even pores at 60μmol/L,or degrading membrane to make it completely lose cytoskeleton structure at 80μmol/L;r Lc-P5L treatment also resulted in DNA degradation.Fluorescence observation results indicated r Lc-P5L could cause L929 cells at least two obvious changes:one is nucleus,nuclear chromatin condensed in the margin,nuclear volume became smaller and shrank to be out of shape,or lysed to be debris;the other is cytoskeleton,they became disordered and polarized to make cells atrophic shapes,or even lysed to be debris.In summary,r Lc-P5L owned potential anticancer activity causing membrane structure damage and genome DNA degradation.Interestingly,treatment with different concentration of r Lc-P5L seemingly caused the similar but different changes,whether it indeed gave rise to cancer cells diverse death way,the further studies should be performed,and the detailed mechanisms were still need further explored.

Thymoquinone anticancer activity is enhanced when combined with royal jelly in human breast cancer

BACKGROUND Breast cancer is the most common cause of the majority of cancer-related deaths in women,among which triple-negative breast cancer is the most aggressive type of breast cancer diagnosed with limited treatment options.Thymoquinone(TQ),the main bioactive constituent of Nigella sativa,has been extensively studied as a potent anticancer molecule against various types of cancers.Honeybee products such as the royal jelly(RJ),the nutritive secretion fed to honeybee queens,exhibit a variety of biological activities besides its anticancer effect.However,the anticancer activity of the combination of TQ and RJ against breast cancer is still unknown.AIM To investigate cytotoxicity of RJ in FHs 74 Int cells and the anticancer effects of TQ,RJ,and their combinations in the MDA-MB-231 cell line.METHODS Cells were treated with TQ,RJ,and their combinations for 24 h.Using 3-(4,5 dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay,we determined the half-maximal inhibitory concentration of TQ.Trypan blue and 3-(4,5 dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assays were then performed to assess the cell viability in response to different treatment conditions.Cell death and cycle regulation were investigated using propidium iodide deoxyribonucleic acid staining followed by flow cytometry in response to a single dose of TQ,RJ,and their combination.Immunostaining for cleaved caspase 3 and Ki67 expression was used to determine apoptosis induction and changes in cell proliferation.RESULTS TQ alone inhibited cell viability in a dose-dependent manner at concentrations below and above the half-maximal inhibitory concentration.RJ exhibited relatively nontoxic effects against MDA-MB-231 cells and FHs 74 Int small intestinal cells at concentrations below 5μg/mL.High doses of RJ(200μg/mL)had greater toxicity against MDA-MB-231 cells.Interestingly,the inhibition of cell viability was most pronounced in response to 15μmol/L TQ and 5μg/mL RJ.A dose of 15μmol/L TQ caused a significant increase in the PreG1 population,while a more pronounced effect on cell viability inhibition and PreG1 increase was observed in response to TQ and RJ combinations.TQ was the main inducer of caspase 3-dependent apoptosis when applied alone and in combination with RJ.In contrast,no significant regulation of Ki67 expression was observed,indicating that the decrease in cell viability was due to apoptosis induction rather than to inhibition of cell proliferation.CONCLUSION This study is the first to report enhanced anticancer effects of TQ and RJ combination against MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells,which could confer an advantage for cancer therapy.

PROGRESS OF RESEARCH IN THE PREPARATION OF CHINESE TRADITIONAL AND HERBAL DRUGS WITH ANTICANCER ACTIVITY

Research into anticancer substances madefrom Chinese herbal drugs and their clinicalapplication is gaining international attention bythe medical profession of the more than 20analogues of camptothecine isolated from Camp-totheca tree in China, most exhibited anticanceractivity. Among them, 10-hydroxycamptothe-cine has a wide anticancer spectrum and is lesstoxic. In suspension, it exhibits some therapeu-tic effects on primary hepatic cancer, gastriccarcinoma, cancer of the urinary bladder andleukemia.

Antitumor Activity and Theoretical Calculation of Evodiamine and Rutaecarpine

The antitumor activities of two alkaloids, evodiamine（EVO） and rutaecarpine（RUT）, against MCF-7, SMMC-7721 and SW-1353 cells growth in vitro were investigated by MTT assay. The results showed that the anti-tumor effects of two alkaloids were remarkably different. In order to discover the relationship of antitumor activity and structures of the compounds, the dihedral angle, Natural Electron Configuration, frontier molecular orbital profiles（HOMO, LUMO）and bandgaps of these two compounds have been studied based on density functional theory（DFT）by means of DFT-B3LYP/6-31G（d） in Gaussian 03. The calculation results of dihedral angle showed that EVO, due to the existence of methyl group attached to the N（14） atom, have non-planar and twisted structures, which decrease the stability of EVO and increase the activity of EVO. Furthermore, the bandgaps of RUT are lower than that of EVO, indicating RUT has higher stability than EVO, so the activity of EVO is higher than that of RUT. In addition, the negative charge of N14 atom in EVO is lower than that of in RUT, so the positive charge of N（14） atom in EVO is higher than that of in RUT, which suggests that the nucleophile is easier to aggress the N（14） atom in EVO than that in RUT, so the reason of the different antitumor activities of EVO and RUT may be attacked by nucleophile.

Potato protease inhibitors,a functional food material with antioxidant and anticancer potential

Potato protease inhibitors(PPIs),as the main component of potato protein isolate,have good safety,nutrition and great market potential.The antioxidant and anticancer properties of PPIs were evaluated with cellbased biological assays.The results showed that when the concentration of PPIs was 5 mg/mL,the peroxyl radical scavenging value was(2119±204)mg VCE/100 g,and the cellular antioxidant activity values were(45.83±3.5)(no PBS wash)and(33.25±4.4)μmol QE/100 g(PBS wash).Cells pretreated with PPIs could significantly prevent the oxidative damage induced by H_(2)O_(2),inhibit the morphological changes of cells and maintain the integrity.Furthermore,PPIs had selective anti-proliferative effects on GIST882 cells(IC50=(10.53±3.87)mg/mL)and demonstrated potent inhibition of the growth,migration and invasion of cancer cells.These findings provide a scientific basis for PPIs as promising candidates for functional foods to aid in the prevention of oxidative damage and cancer.

The Combination of Artesunate and Paclitaxel in 1:1 Ratio Induces Apoptosis and Morphology Change on Human Prostate Cancer Cell Lines

The combination of Artesunate (ART) and Paclitaxel (PTX) in two human prostate cancer (PCa) cell lines (PC-3 and LNCaP) was evaluated to investigate the effects on proliferation, apoptosis and morphological changes. The half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values that were observed by ART and PTX on both LNCaP and PC-3 cell lines at 72-and 120-hour exposure were used to assess these effects. Early and late apoptosis was detected in Annexin V-FITC/PI assay revealed a shift in population of cells towards early and mid-apoptosis with ART + PTX than with ART and PTX individually. More effects were observed on LNCaP cell lines at both 72-hour and 120-hour exposure. The results for the Caspase 3/7 activity assay showed shift of viable population in all induced samples compared to control. Morphological changes occurred in both cell lines;this was validated in qualitative assessment when examined under the inverted microscope. These findings indicated that ART + PTX suppressed PCa cell proliferation in a dose- and time-dependent manner.

Anticancer Activities of Substituted Cinnamic Acid Phenethyl Esters on Human Cancer Cell Lines

Caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) and sixteen substituted cinnamic acid phenethyl esters were prepared via conventional procedures in order to test their in vitro anticancer activities by either MTT assay or SRB assay on six different human cancer cell lines. The results indicated that in the concentration of 10 μmol·L -1 the lead compound CAPE possessed anticancer activities against human HL 60, Bel 7402, and Hela cell lines, and two other compounds possessed potent anticancer activities against Bel 7402 and Hela cell lines.

Hydrolysis Mechanism of the NAMI-A-type Antitumor Complex （HL）[trans-RuCl4L（dmso-S）] （L=1-methyl-l,2,4-triazole）

The hydrolysis process of Ru（III） complex （HL）[trans-RuC14L（dmso-S）] （L=l-methyl-l,2,4- triazole and dmso-S=S-dimethyl sulfoxide） （1）, a potential antitumor complex similar to the well-known antitumor agent （Him）[trans-RuC14 （dmso-S）（im）] （NAMI-A, im=imidazole）, was investigated using density functional theory combined with the conductor-like polarizable continuum model approach. Tile structural characteristics and the detailed energy profiles for the hydrolysis processes of this complex were obtained. For the first hydrolysis step, complex 1 has slightly higher barrier energies than the reported anticancer drug NAMI-A, and the result is in accordance with the experimental evidence indicating larger half-life for complex 1. For the second hydrolysis step, the formation of cis-diaqua species is thermodynamic preferred to that of trans isomers. In addition, on the basis of the analysis of electronic characteristics of species in the hydrolysis process, the trend in nucleophilic attack abilities of hydrolysis products by pertinent biomolecules is revealed and predicted.

Cantharidin and Its Analogues:Anticancer and Ser/Thr Protein Phosphatase Inhibitory Activities

This paper mainly describes the anticancer activities and Ser/Thr protein phosphatase inhibitory activities of cantharidin and its analogues.

Synthesis and Anticancer Effect of gem-Difluoromethylenated Chrysin Derivatives

Ten gem-difluoromethylenated chrysin derivatives were prepared and their anticancer activities in vitro were evaluated by the standard MTT method. The results of biological test showed that some of gem-difluoromethylenated chrysin derivatives had higher anticancer activity than chrysin.

Synthesis and anticancer activities of porphyrin induced anticancer drugs

In view of the property of porphyrin＇s accumulation selectively in tumor, the ftorafur was modified by binding a porphyrin block to improve its tumor targeting and reduce its side effects. These novel porphyrin derivatives and metal compounds were synthesized under mild conditions with satisfactory yield, and the constructions of all these new compounds were characterized by UV, IR, MS, ^1H NMR spectra and elementary analysis. Their anticancer activities were evaluated by MTT assay; the results indicated that the anticancer activities of compounds 4a-e were twice as high as that of ftorafur.

The Anticancer Activities Phenolic Amides from the Stem of Lycium barbarum

Four new phenolic amides,4-O-methylgrossamide(1),(E)-2-(4,5-dihydroxy-2-{3-[(4-hydrox-yphenethyl)amino]-3-oxopropyl}-phenyl)-3-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-N-(4-hydroxyphenethyl)acryl-amide(2),(Z)-lyciumamide C(3),(Z)-thoreliamide B(4),together with thirteen known phenolic amides were identified from the stem of Lycium barbarum.The structures of the new compounds were determined by spectroscopic methods.All compounds were evaluated for their anti-cancer activities against human glioma stem cell lines.

Synthesis,Crystal Structure and Properties of A Triphenyltin Schiff Complex with Salicylidene-2-aminophenol

The triphenyltin complex with salicylidene-2-aminophenol （C31H24NO2Sn, 1） has been synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, IR spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and X-ray single-crystal diffraction. The complex crystallizes in monoclinic system, P21/c space group with a = 1.09515（8）, b = 1.17739（8）, c = 2.29075（14） nm, β = 117.070（4）°, V = 2.6302（3） nm3, Z = 4, Dc = 1.417 g/cm3, ？ = 0.999 mm–1, F（000） = 1123, R = 0.0472 and wR = 0.1169. X-ray single-crystal diffraction showed that 1 demonstrates a one-dimensional chain structure. The quantum chemical calculation of 1 has been investigated. Complex 1 emits fluo- rescence at 558 nm and exhibits certain inhibitory activity against NCI-H460, A549 and MCF-7.

Synthesis,Structure and Biological Activities of a Novel Anionic Organotin(Ⅳ)Complex{[(pClC6H4CH2)Sn(H2O)(Cl)2OCOCH(O)CH(O)CO2Sn(H2O)(Cl)2(p-ClC6H4CH2)]·2(HNEt3)}

A novel anionic organotin(Ⅳ) complex {[(pClCHCH)Sn(HO)(Cl)OCOCH(O)CH(O)COSn(HO)(Cl)(p-ClCHCH)]·2(HNEt)}(1) was synthesized by the reaction of di(p-chlorobenzy)tin dichloride with the D-tartaric acid in 2:1 molar in the presence of an organic base triethylamine. The structure was characterized by elemental analysis, IR, TG, XRD and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. It crystallizes in triclinic, P1 space group, with a = 0.7067(1), b = 1.9762(3), c = 2.2383(3) nm, α = 91.544(2)°, β = 90.075(2)°, γ = 90.110(2)°, V = 3.1247(7) nm~3, Z = 3, Dc = 1.621 g/cm~3, m(Mo Kα) = 16.29 cm–1, F(000) = 1530, R = 0.0394, wR = 0.1092,(Δρ)max = 1224 and(Δρ)min = –840 e/nm~3. The stabilities, orbital energies and composition characteristics of some frontier molecular orbitals of 1 have been carefully investigated with quantum chemistry calculation. In addition, the in vitro antitumor activity suggested that 1 had stronger inhibitory activity on H460, MCF7 than on A549.