Segetoside I, a plant-derived bisdesmosidic saponin, induces apoptosis in human hepatoma cells in vitro and inhibits tumor growth in vivo

Deciphering triterpenoid saponin biosynthesis by leveraging transcriptome response to methyl jasmonate elicitation in Saponaria vaccaria

Methyl jasmonate (MeJA) is a known elicitor of plant specialized metabolism, including triterpenoid saponins. Saponaria vaccaria is an annual herb used in traditional Chinese medicine, containing large quantities of oleanane-type triterpenoid saponins with anticancer properties and structural similarities to the vaccine adjuvant QS-21. Leveraging the MeJA-elicited saponin biosynthesis, we identify multiple enzymes catalyzing the oxidation and glycosylation of triterpenoids in S. vaccaria. This exploration is aided by Pacbio full-length transcriptome sequencing and gene expression analysis. A cellulose synthase-like enzyme can not only glucuronidate triterpenoid aglycones but also alter the product profile of a cytochrome P450 monooxygenase via preference for the aldehyde intermediate. Furthermore, the discovery of a UDP-glucose 4,6-dehydratase and a UDP-4-keto-6-deoxy-glucose reductase reveals the biosynthetic pathway for the rare nucleotide sugar UDP-D-fucose, a likely sugar donor for fucosylation of plant natural products. Our work enables the production and optimization of high-value saponins in microorganisms and plants through synthetic biology approaches.

Screening of anti-cancer compounds from Vaccariae Semen by lung cancer A549 cell fishing and UHPLC-LTQ Orbitrap MS

Vaccariae Semen, derived from the dried ripe seed of Vaccaria segetalis (Neck.) Garcke, has various therapeutic characteristics in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), containing promoting blood circulation and unblocking meridians. It exhibits significant anti-cancer activity and is therapeutically utilized to treat and reduce chemotherapy adverse effects in cancer patients, notably those with lung cancer. However, the active ingredients responsible for its anti-lung cancer efficacy remain unknown. In this study, we used A549 cell fishing in conjunction with UHPLC-LTQ Orbitrap MS to screen for anti-lung cancer active components in Vaccariae Semen. The cell counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay revealed that the n-butanol extract substantially reduced A549 cell growth. Through the cell fishing assay, we found 14 A549 cell-binding compounds in the n-butanol extract, all of which were identified as triterpenoid saponins. The total saponins of Vaccariae Semen were subsequently purified using macroporous adsorption resin (MAR), and they showed a significant inhibitory effect on the proliferation of A549 lung cancer cells, as well as alterations in cell morphology, apoptosis, and fragmentation. In conclusion, saponins were discovered as the key active components responsible for the anti-lung cancer activity of Vaccariae Semen.

Quaternary Ammonium Salt Strategy and Molecular Docking Studies of Novel 5-Acyl-8-(Arylamino)-Quinolines by Acetyl and Methanesulfonyl Chloride for Dual Evaluation Bioactivity

Six quinoline derivatives containing quaternary ammonium salts and acyl chloride groups were synthesized from ethyl 8-chloro-[1,3]dioxolo[4,5-g]quinoline-7-carboxylate in several step. With berberine as the positive control, three human cancer cell lines (HCT-116, Hela and A549) and human normal liver L-02 cell lines were used to evaluate the cytotoxicity of the newly synthesized compounds in vitro. Compound (V-X) showed good antitumor activity, and the test result of compound (VII) was better than that of positive control group. In terms of antibacterial activity, compound (V-X) has obvious inhibitory effect on Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 29213) and Escherichia coli (ATCC 8739), and its antibacterial activity is about 1-4 times that of positive control amoxicillin and 1-2 times that of ciprofloxacin. Among them, the most effective compounds (VII) and (X) have 4-fold the antibacterial activity of amoxicillin and 2-fold the antibacterial activity of ciprofloxacin.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1134/S1068162023020097.

Anticancer activity of oleanolic acid and its derivatives: Recent advances in evidence, target profiling and mechanisms of action

Oleanolic acid (OA, 3 β - hydroxyoleanolic acid-12-en-28-oic acid) is a pentacyclic triterpenoid present in many plants. As a new framework for development of semi synthetic triterpenoids, OA is of great significance in the discovery of anticancer drugs. Some of these derivatives, such as CDDO (2-cyano-3,12-dioxooleana-1, 9 (11)-dien-28-oic acid) have been verified in clinical trials, while other derivatives studied previously, such as SZC014, SZC015 and SZC017 (OA derivatives respectively), are also candidate drugs for cancer treatment. This paper reviews the preclinical studies, literature evidence, target analysis and anticancer mechanism of OA and its derivatives. The mechanism of action of its derivatives mainly includes anti-cancer cell proliferation, inducing tumor cell apoptosis, inducing autophagy, regulating cell cycle regulatory proteins, inhibiting vascular endothelial growth, anti angiogenesis, inhibiting tumor cell migration and invasion. In recent years, the molecular mechanism of OA and its derivatives has been elucidated. These effects seem to be mediated by the alterations in a variety of signaling pathways induced by OA and its derivatives. In conclusion, OA and its derivatives are considered as important candidate drugs for the treatment of cancer, indicating that OA and its derivatives have the potential to be used as anticancer drugs in practice.

Vaccaria segetalis: A Review of Ethnomedicinal, Phytochemical, Pharmacological, and Toxicological Findings

Vaccaria segetalis is a dry mature seed of Vaccaria hispanica (Mill.) Rauschert, which belongs to the genus V. segetalis (Neck.) Garcke. There are multiple medicinal parts of V. segetalis, according to the records, including roots, stems, leaves, flowers, and seeds, which should be used together. Currently, V. segetalis is most frequently used in the treatment of menstruation, dysmenorrhea, breast milk stoppages, and chylorrhea. Numerous studies present historical evidence of the use of V. segetalis to treat several diseases and describe its beneficial effects including prolactin- (PRL-) like, estrogen-like, antitumor, antiangiogenesis, and antioxidant activity. We summarized the period from January 1980 to December 2019 regarding V. segetalis. This review paper indicates that V. segetalis has promising clinical applications. The main active ingredients of the plant have been elucidated in recent years. We summarized the previously and newly discovered pharmacological effects of V. segetalis in addition to its active ingredients, ethnopharmacological uses, and toxicological properties, and provided a focus for future research.

In vitro/in vivo hepatoprotective properties of 1-O-(4-hydroxymethylphenyl)-α-L-rhamnopyranoside from Moringa oleifera seeds against carbon tetrachloride-induced hepatic injury

1-O-(4-hydroxymethylphenyl)-α-L-rhamnopyranoside (MPG) is a phenolic glycoside that exists in Moringa oleifera seeds with various health benefits, whereas its hepatoprotective effect is lacking clarification. Herein, MPG was isolated from Moringa oleifera seeds, and its hepatoprotection against CCl₄-induced hepatotoxicity in L02 cells and ICR mice was investigated. Toxicity studies showed that MPG did not induce significant changes in organ coefficients and histological analysis, as well as exhibited no cytotoxicity. In vitro studies indicated that MPG substantially increased cell viability and intracellular SOD activities, and significantly inhibited LDH leakage in CCl₄-treated cells. In vivo studies demonstrated that MPG significantly alleviated CCl₄-induced hepatotoxicity in mice, as indicated by diagnostic indicators of hepatic injury, as well as the histopathological analysis. Moreover, MPG reduced the lipid peroxidation levels and regulated the inflammatory cytokines. Notably, MPG substantially suppressed the significant elevation of ROS production in hepatocytes of mice intoxicated with CCl₄. Moreover, TUNEL assay demonstrated that MPG obviously inhibited hepatic apoptosis induced by CCl₄. Altogether, these results suggested that MPG has excellent liver-protecting effects against hepatocytotoxicity induced by CCl₄ in mice and L02 cells, which can be further developed as a valuable functional food additive or drug for the treatment of hepatic injury.

Daucosterol induces autophagic-dependent apoptosis in prostate cancer via JNK activation

Plant sterols (phytosterols) have been widely accepted as a natural anti-cancer agent in multiple malignant tumors. This study was designed to investigate the functions of daucosterol in prostate cancer progression and its possible molecular mechanisms. Our results showed that daucosterol inhibited cell proliferation and induced cell cycle arrest. Moreover, daucosterol treatment obviously promoted apoptosis and autophagy. An autophagy inhibitor, 3-methyladenine (3-MA) was proved to counteract daucosterol-triggered autophagy, growth inhibition, and apoptosis, indicating that daucosterol-induced apoptotic response was dependent on autophagy. Additionally, treatment with daucosterol resulted in increased phosphorylation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK). Furthermore, pre-treatment with a JNK-specific inhibitor SP600125 abated daucosterol-elicited autophagy and apoptotic cell death. Taken together, our findings demonstrated that daucosterol blocked prostate cancer growth at least partly through inducing autophagic-dependent apoptosis via activating JNK signaling, providing a promising candidate for the development of antitumor drugs in prostate cancer treatment.

A Tf-modified tripterine-loaded coix seed oil microemulsion enhances anti-cervical cancer treatment

Purpose

A transferrin-modified microemulsion carrying coix seed oil and tripterine (Tf-CT-MEs) was developed for improved tumor-specific accumulation and penetration to enhance cervical cancer treatment.

Materials and methods

Tripterine-loaded coix seed oil microemulsion (CT-MEs) was prepared through one-step emulsion method. The morphology, size, and zeta potential of CT-MEs and Tf-CT-MEs were examined by transmission electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering. The cellular uptake and mechanisms of HeLa cells were investigated by flow cytometry. Intratumor penetration was investigated using a HeLa three-dimensional (3D) tumor spheroid as the model. The cytotoxicity of the CT-MEs and Tf-CT-MEs against HeLa cells were evaluated by the MTT assay. Additionally, the apoptotic rate of CT-MEs and Tf-CT-MEs inducing apoptosis in HeLa cells was evaluated.

Results

In the physicochemical characterization, coix seed oil and CT-MEs exhibited a small size (32.47±0.15 nm) and nearly neutral surface charge (−0.36±0.11 mV). After modification with transferrin, the particle size of Tf-CT-MEs slightly increased to 40.02±0.21 nm, but the zeta potential decreased remarkably to -13.63±1.31 mV. The IC₅₀ of Tf-CT-MEs against HeLa cells was 0.7260 µM, which was 2.58-fold lower than that of CT-MEs. In cellular studies, the intracellular fluorescence intensity of fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-labeled Tf-CT-MEs (FITC/Tf-CT-MEs) was 2.28-fold higher than that of FITC-labeled CT-MEs (FITC/CT-MEs). The fluorescence signal of Tf-CT-MEs was observed at 350 µm below the surface of the 3D tumor spheroid. The apoptotic rate of cells treated with Tf-CT-MEs was 1.73- and 2.77-fold higher than that of cells treated with CT-MEs and tripterine, respectively, which was associated with mitochondrial-targeted delivery of tripterine. Moreover, Tf-CT-MEs was capable of significantly downregulating the cellular level of antiapoptotic proteins and arrested cell proliferation in the G₂/M phase.

Conclusion

Taken together, Tf-CT-MEs holds promising potential to be an efficient drug delivery system for combinational therapy of cervical cancer.

Total Flavonoids from Oroxylum indicum Induce Apoptosis via PI3K/Akt/PTEN Signaling Pathway in Liver Cancer

Total flavonoids (TF), derived from the seeds of Oroxylum indicum (L.) Vent., possess many pharmacological functions. In the present study, H22-bearing mice and SMMC-7721 models were employed to evaluate the antitumor activity of TF and to and investigate its possible mechanisms both in vitro and in vivo. Cell viability was evaluated by MTT assay; cell apoptosis rate was analyzed via Annexin V-FITC/PI double staining by flow cytometer. Meanwhile, the expressions of apoptosis-related mRNA and proteins were evaluated by RT-PCR and Western blot analysis. The results revealed that TF could significantly inhibit the tumor growth, and the possible mechanism was related to the effect of inducing tumor cells apoptosis through PI3K/Akt/PTEN signaling pathway. This study has provided a theoretical basis for the further development and application of TF as antitumor drugs.

Targeted delivery of ginsenoside compound K using TPGS/PEG-PCL mixed micelles for effective treatment of lung cancer

Ginsenoside compound K (CK) is one of the effective ingredients in antitumor composition of ginsenoside. However, the poor water solubility and significant efflux have limited the widespread clinical use of CK. In this study, preparation of novel CK-loaded d-alpha-tocopheryl polyethylene glycol 1,000 succinate/poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(ε-caprolactone) mixed micelles (CK-M) is discussed to solve the above problems. Particle size, zeta potential, and morphology were characterized using dynamic light scattering and transmission electron microscopy. CK-M are spherical shaped with an average particle size of 53.07±1.31 nm with high drug loading of 11.19%±0.87% and entrapment efficiency of 94.60%±1.45%. Water solubility of CK was improved to 3.78±0.09 mg/mL, which was ~107.35 times higher than free CK. A549 and PC-9 cells were used to evaluate in vitro cytotoxicity and cellular uptake. IC₅₀ values of CK-M in A549 and PC-9 cells (24 h) were 25.43±2.18 and 18.35±1.90 μg/mL, respectively. Enhanced cellular uptake of CK-M was observed in both cells. Moreover, CK-M promoted tumor cell apoptosis, inhibited tumor cell invasion, metastasis, and efflux through regulation of Bax, Bcl-2, matrix metalloproteinase-2, Caspase-3, and P-glycoprotein. In vivo imaging indicated that CK-M has excellent tumor targeting effect within 24 h, and the relative tumor inhibition rate of CK-M was 52.04%±4.62% compared with control group (P<0.01). Thus, CK-M could be an appropriate delivery agent for enhanced solubility and antitumor effect of CK.