Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Cells Exhibit Differential Sensitivity to Cardenolides from Calotropis gigantea

Triple-negative breast cancers (TNBC) are aggressive and heterogeneous cancers that lack targeted therapies. We implemented a screening program to identify new leads for subgroups of TNBC using diverse cell lines with different molecular drivers. Through this program, we identified an extract from Calotropis gigantea that caused selective cytotoxicity in BT-549 cells as compared to four other TNBC cell lines. Bioassay-guided fractionation of the BT-549 selective extract yielded nine cardenolides responsible for the selective activity. These included eight known cardenolides and a new cardenolide glycoside. Structure-activity relationships among the cardenolides demonstrated a correlation between their relative potencies toward BT-549 cells and Na+/K+ ATPase inhibition. Calotropin, the compound with the highest degree of selectivity for BT-549 cells, increased intracellular Ca2+ in sensitive cells to a greater extent than in the resistant MDA-MB-231 cells. Further studies identified a second TNBC cell line, Hs578T, that is also highly sensitive to the cardenolides, and mechanistic studies were conducted to identify commonalities among the sensitive cell lines. Experiments showed that both cardenolide-sensitive cell lines expressed higher mRNA levels of the Na+/Ca2+ exchanger NCX1 than resistant TNBC cells. This suggests that NCX1 could be a biomarker to identify TNBC patients that might benefit from the clinical administration of a cardiac glycoside for anticancer indications.

Nematicidal cardenolides from Nerium indicum Mill

Three nematicidal cardenolides were obtained from the AcOEt extract of Nerium indicum Mill. by bioassay-guided fractionation. They include a new compound, 3beta-O-(beta-D-diginosyl)-14,15alpha-dihydroxy-5alpha-card-20(22)-enolide (1), and two known compounds, uzarigenin (2) and cardenolide N-1 (3). The median lethal concentrations (LC(50)) of compounds 1-3 against the nematodes Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, Panagrellus redivivus, and Caenorhabditis elegans at 72 h were 103.3, 49.0, and 45.4 mg l(-1), 257.0, 62.7, and 177.8 mg l(-1), and 242.9, 29.1, and 41.7 mg l(-1), respectively. This is the first report about the nematicidal activity of cardenolides.

Acylated-oxypregnane glycosides from the roots of Araujia sericifera

Twenty-three new acylated-oxypregnane glycosides were obtained from the roots of Araujia sericifera. (Asclepiadaceae). These glycosides were confirmed to be tetraglycosides possessing twelve known compounds, 12-O-benzoyllineolon, 12-O-benzoyldeacylmetaplexigenin, ikemagenin, kidjolanin, cynanchogenin, caudatin, rostratamine, penupogenin, 12-O-benzoylisolineolon, 12-O-tigloyldecylmetaplexigenin (incisagenin), 12-O-benzoyl-20-O-acetylsarcostin, 20-O-benzoyl-12-O-(E)-cinnamoyl-3 beta,5 alpha,8 beta,12 beta,14 beta,17 beta,20-heptahydroxy-(20S)-pregn-6-ene and ten new acylated-oxypregnanes, 12-O-benzoyl-20S-hydroxyisolineolon, 12-O-tigloyllineolon, 12-O-salicyloyllineolon, 12-O-salicyloyldeacylmetplexigenin, 12-O-benzoyl-3 beta,5 alpha,8 beta,12 beta,14 beta,17 beta-hexahydroxypregn-6-en-20-one, 12-O-benzoyl-19-benzoyloxydeacylmetapleligenin, 12-O-benzoyl-19-benzoyloxy-20-O-acetylsarcostin, 12-O-benzoyl-19-salicyloyloxy-20-O-acetylsarcostin, 12-O-benzoyl-5 alpha,6 alpha-epoxydeacylmetaplexigenin, and 12-O-benzoyl-5 alpha,6 alpha-epoxylineolon as their aglycones, using both spectroscopic and chemical methods.