Study on the mechanism of Cortex Lycii on lung cancer based on network pharmacology combined with experimental validation

HSP90: A promising target for NSCLC treatments

The emergence of targeted therapies and immunotherapies has improved the overall survival of patients with nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but the 5-year survival rate remains low. New drugs are needed to overcome this dilemma. Moreover, the significant correlation between various client proteins of heat-shock protein (HSP) 90 and tumor occurrence, progression, and drug resistance suggests that HSP90 is a potential therapeutic target for NSCLC. However, the outcomes of clinical trials for HSP90 inhibitors have been disappointing, indicating significant toxicity of these drugs and that further screening of the beneficiary population is required. NSCLC patients with oncogenic-driven gene mutations or those at advanced stages who are resistant to multi-line treatments may benefit from HSP90 inhibitors. Enhancing the therapeutic efficacy and reducing the toxicity of HSP90 inhibitors can be achieved via the optimization of their drug structure, using them in combination therapies with low-dose HSP90 inhibitors and other drugs, and via targeted administration to tumor lesions. Here, we provide a review of the recent research on the role of HSP90 in NSCLC and summarize relevant studies of HSP90 inhibitors in NSCLC.

Cortex Mori extracts induce apoptosis and inhibit tumor invasion via blockage of the PI3K/AKT signaling in melanoma cells

Melanoma, the most aggressive and deadliest form of skin cancer, has attracted increased attention due to its increasing incidence worldwide. The Cortex Mori (CM) has long been used as a classical traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) to treat various diseases, including cancer. The bioactive components and underlying mechanisms, however, remain largely unknown. The current study aims to investigate the anti-melanoma effects of CM and potential mechanisms through combined network pharmacology and bioinformatic analyses, and validated by in vitro and in vivo experiments. We report here that CM has anti-melanoma activity both in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, 25 bioactive compounds in CM were found to share 142 melanoma targets, and network pharmacology and enrichment analyses suggested that CM inhibits melanoma through multiple biological processes and signaling pathways, particularly the PI3K-AKT signaling inhibition and activation of apoptotic pathways, which were further confirmed by biochemical and histological examinations. Finally, partial CM-derived bioactive compounds were found to show anti-melanoma effects, validating the anti-melanoma potential of bioactive ingredients of CM. Taken together, these results reveal bioactive components and mechanisms of CM in inhibiting melanoma, providing them as potential anti-cancer natural products for the treatment of melanoma.