3D-QSAR and docking studies on ursolic acid derivatives for anticancer activity based on bladder cell line T24 targeting NF-kB pathway inhibition

An Update on Pentacyclic Triterpenoids Ursolic and Oleanolic Acids and Related Derivatives as Anticancer Candidates

Cancer is a global health problem, with the incidence rate estimated to reach 40% of the population by 2030. Although there are currently several therapeutic methods, none of them guarantee complete healing. Plant-derived natural products show high therapeutic potential in the management of various types of cancer, with some of them already being used in current practice. Among different classes of phytocompounds, pentacyclic triterpenoids have been in the spotlight of research on this topic. Ursolic acid (UA) and its structural isomer, oleanolic acid (OA), represent compounds intensively studied and tested in vitro and in vivo for their anticancer and chemopreventive properties. Since natural compounds can rarely be used in practice as such due to their characteristic physico-chemical properties, to tackle this problem, their derivatization has been attempted, obtaining compounds with improved solubility, absorption, stability, effectiveness, and reduced toxicity. This review presents various UA and OA derivatives that have been synthesized and evaluated in recent studies for their anticancer potential. It can be observed that the most frequent structural transformations were carried out at the C-3, C-28, or both positions simultaneously. It has been demonstrated that conjugation with heterocycles or cinnamic acid, derivatization as hydrazide, or transforming OH groups into esters or amides increases anticancer efficacy.

Role of ursolic acid in preventing gastrointestinal cancer: recent trends and future perspectives

Gastrointestinal malignancies are one of the major worldwide health concerns. In the present review, we have assessed the plausible therapeutic implication of Ursolic Acid (UA) against gastrointestinal cancer. By modulating several signaling pathways critical in cancer development, UA could offer anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative, and anti-metastatic properties. However, being of low oral bioavailability and poor permeability, its clinical value is restricted. To deliver and protect the drug, liposomes and polymer micelles are two UA nanoformulations that can effectively increase medicine stability. The use of UA for treating cancers is safe and appropriate with low toxicity characteristics and a predictable pharmacokinetic profile. Although the bioavailability of UA is limited, its nanoformulations could emerge as an alternative to enhance its efficacy in treating GI cancers. Further optimization and validation in the clinical trials are necessary. The combination of molecular profiling with nanoparticle-based drug delivery technologies holds the potential for bringing UA to maximum efficacy, looking for good prospects with GI cancer treatment.

Recent advances in the area of plant-based anti-cancer drug discovery using computational approaches

Phytocompounds are a well-established source of drug discovery due to their unique chemical and functional diversities. In the area of cancer therapeutics, several phytocompounds have been used till date to design and develop new drugs. One of the desired interests of pharmaceutical companies and researchers globally is that new anti-cancer leads are discovered, for which phytocompounds can be considered a valuable source. Simultaneously, in recent years, the growth of computational approaches like virtual screening (VS), molecular dynamics (MD), pharmacophore modelling, Quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR), Absorption Distribution Metabolism Excretion and Toxicity (ADMET), network biology, and machine learning (ML) has gained importance due to their efficiency, reduced time-consuming nature, and cost-effectiveness. Therefore, the present review amalgamates the information on plant-based molecules identified for cancer lead discovery from in silico approaches. The mandate of this review is to discuss studies published in the last 5-6 years that aim to identify the phytomolecules as leads against cancer with the help of traditional computational approaches as well as newer techniques like network pharmacology and ML. This review also lists the databases and webservers available in the public domain for phytocompounds related information that can be harnessed for drug discovery. It is expected that the present review would be useful to pharmacologists, medicinal chemists, molecular biologists, and other researchers involved in the development of natural products (NPs) into clinically effective lead molecules.

Targeting bladder cancer with Trigonella foenum-graecum: a computational study using network pharmacology and molecular docking

Trigonella foenum-graecum (TF-graecum), known as Hulba or Fenugreek, is one of the oldest known medicinal plants. It has been found to have antimicrobial, antifungal, antioxidant, wound-healing, anti-diarrheal, hypoglycemic, anti-diabetic, and anti-inflammatory activities. In our current report, we have collected and screened the active compounds of TF-graecum and their potential targets via different pharmacology platforms. Network construction shows that eight active compounds may act on 223 potential bladder cancer targets. The pathway enrichment analysis for the seven potential targets of the eight compounds selected, based on KEGG pathway analysis, was conducted to clarify the potential pharmacological effects. Finally, molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation showed the stability of protein-ligand interactions. This study highlights the need for increased research into the potential medical benefits of this plant.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Ethnomedicinal uses of Indian spices used for cancer treatment: A treatise on structure-activity relationship and signaling pathways

Cancer is among the major cause of demise worldwide. Though the array of anticancer chemical medications is available but unfortunately, they are also associated with negative health effects. The invaluable therapeutic potential of spices makes them an integral part of our daily diet. Therefore, the present work focuses on the traditional uses of 46 spices and the phytochemical analysis of 31 spices. Out of them, only 29 spices are explored for their cytotoxicity against different cancer cell lines. The pre-clinical and clinical anticancer studies of spices along with their toxicity, mechanism of actions like Wnt/β-catenin, phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), JAK/STAT, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), Notch-mediated pathways and Quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) studies were also focused. Curcumin was found as one of the most explored bioactive in every aspect such as in-vitro, in-vivo, clinical as well as SAR anticancer studies while some other bioactive such as 1,8-Cineole, trans-Anethole, Diosgenin, Trigonelline are either unexplored or least explored for their clinical and SAR studies. In fact, traditional medicinal uses of spices also provide solid shreds of evidence for the new leads towards the invention of novel anticancer agents. Therefore, further research can be designed for the anticancer marketed formulation from spices after having their placebo and related toxicological data.

In silico studies on p21-activated kinase 4 inhibitors: comprehensive application of 3D-QSAR analysis, molecular docking, molecular dynamics simulations, and MM-GBSA calculation

P21-activated kinase 4 (PAK4) is a serine/threonine protein kinase, which is associated with many cancer diseases, and thus being considered as a potential drug target. In this study, three-dimensional quantitative structure-activity relationship (3D-QSAR), molecular docking and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were performed to explore the structure-activity relationship of a series of pyrropyrazole PAK4 inhibitors. The statistical parameters of comparative molecular field analysis (CoMFA, Q ² = 0.837, R ² = 0.990, and R ² _pred = 0.967) and comparative molecular similarity indices analysis (CoMSIA, Q ² = 0.720, R ² = 0.972, and R ² _pred = 0.946) were obtained from 3D-QSAR model, which exhibited good predictive ability and significant statistical reliability. The binding mode of PAK4 with its inhibitors was obtained through molecular docking study, which indicated that the residues of GLU396, LEU398, LYS350, and ASP458 were important for activity. Molecular mechanics generalized born surface area (MM-GBSA) method was performed to calculate the binding free energy, which indicated that the coulomb, lipophilic and van der Waals (vdW) interactions made major contributions to the binding affinity. Furthermore, through 100 ns MD simulations, we obtained the key amino acid residues and the types of interactions they participated in. Based on the constructed 3D-QSAR model, some novel pyrropyrazole derivatives targeting PAK4 were designed with improved predicted activities. Pharmacokinetic and toxicity predictions of the designed PAK4 inhibitors were obtained by the pkCSM, indicating these compounds had better absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion and toxicity (ADMET) properties. Above research provided a valuable insight for developing novel and effective pyrropyrazole compounds targeting PAK4.

Quantitative structure-activity relationship and molecular docking studies on human proteasome inhibitors for anticancer activity targeting NF-κB signaling pathway

The abnormal ubiquitin-proteasome is found as an important target in various human diseases, especially in cancer, and recently it has received prevalent attention as a challenging therapeutic target. The current work is designed to derive a predictive two-dimensional quantitative structure-activity relationship model for anticancer human proteasome target of NF-κB signaling pathway. The established 2 D-QSAR is dependent on multiple linear regression approach and validated through leave-One-Out and external test set prediction method. The robust QSAR model showed the r² of 0.83 and q² of 0.80 and pred_r² of 0.77. Three chemical properties, electronegativity count, average potential, and T_2_N_6 were identified as significant descriptors to predict the anticancer activities of the proteasome antagonists. Besides, the predicted top hit compounds were considered to check out the compliance with Rule of five and pharmacokinetic parameters for oral bioavailability in the human body. The molecular docking was accomplished to unravel the molecular mode of action of best-predicted compounds which was compatible with the standard drug. Following this approach, lastly two compounds NP and AP were recognized as the best candidates since these top compounds follow all the standard limit point of entire filters and indicated effective and decent docking score. The outcomes of the study sturdily suggested that the developed model and top hit compound's binding conformation are rational in the exploration of unknown antagonist's anticancer activity. The research would be of great support and is supposed to be of immense significance in the development and designing of drug-like candidates in preliminary drug discovery. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Rosmarinus officinalis L. (rosemary) as therapeutic and prophylactic agent

Rosmarinus officinalis L. (rosemary) is a medicinal plant native to the Mediterranean region and cultivated around the world. Besides the therapeutic purpose, it is commonly used as a condiment and food preservative. R. officinalis L. is constituted by bioactive molecules, the phytocompounds, responsible for implement several pharmacological activities, such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antimicrobial, antiproliferative, antitumor and protective, inhibitory and attenuating activities. Thus, in vivo and in vitro studies were presented in this Review, approaching the therapeutic and prophylactic effects of R. officinalis L. on some physiological disorders caused by biochemical, chemical or biological agents. In this way, methodology, mechanisms, results, and conclusions were described. The main objective of this study was showing that plant products could be equivalent to the available medicines.