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Tian H, Zhao F, Yue BS, Zhai BT. Combinational Antitumor Strategies Based on the Active Ingredients of Toad Skin and Toad Venom. Drug Des Devel Ther 2024; 18:3549-3594. [PMID: 39139676 PMCID: PMC11321342 DOI: 10.2147/dddt.s469832] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2024] [Accepted: 07/25/2024] [Indexed: 08/15/2024] Open
Abstract
A multidrug combination strategy is an important mean to improve the treatment of cancer and is the mainstream scheme of clinical cancer treatment. The active ingredients of traditional Chinese medicine, represented by toad skin and toad venom, have the advantages of high efficiency, low toxicity, wide action and multiple targets and have become ideal targets in combined treatment strategies for tumors in recent years. Toad skin and toad venom are traditional Chinese animal medicines derived from Bufo bufo gargarizans Cantor or Bufo melanostictus Schneider that have shown excellent therapeutic effects on the treatment of various cancers and cancer pain as adjuvant antitumor drugs in clinical practice. The involved mechanisms include inducing apoptosis, arresting the cell cycle, inhibiting cell proliferation, migration and invasion, inhibiting tumor angiogenesis, reversing the multidrug resistance of tumor cells, and regulating multiple signaling pathways and targets. Moreover, a multidrug combination strategy based on a nanodelivery system can realize the precise loading of the active ingredients of toad skin or toad venom and other antitumor drugs and carry drugs to overcome physiological and pathological barriers, complete efficient enrichment in tumor tissues, and achieve targeted delivery to tumor cells and the controlled release of drugs, thus enhancing antitumor efficacy and reducing toxicity and side effects. This article reviewed the clinical efficacy and safety of the combination of toad skin and toad venom with chemotherapeutic drugs, targeted drugs, analgesics and other drugs; evaluated the effects and mechanisms of the combination of toad skin and toad venom with chemotherapy, targeted therapy, radiotherapy or hyperthermia, traditional Chinese medicine, signaling pathway inhibitors and other therapies in cell and animal models; and summarized the codelivery strategies for the active ingredients of toad skin and toad venom with chemotherapeutic drugs, small-molecule targeted drugs, monoclonal antibodies, active ingredients of traditional Chinese medicine, and photodynamic and photothermal therapeutic drugs to provide a basis for the rational drug use of toad skin and toad venom in the clinic and the development of novel drug delivery systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huan Tian
- Department of Pharmacy, Xi’an Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Xi’an, People’s Republic of China
| | - Feng Zhao
- Department of Pharmacy, Xi’an Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Xi’an, People’s Republic of China
| | - Bao-Sen Yue
- Department of Pharmacy, Xi’an Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Xi’an, People’s Republic of China
| | - Bing-Tao Zhai
- College of Pharmacy, Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine, Xi’an, People’s Republic of China
- State Key Laboratory of Research & Development of Characteristic Qin Medicine Resources (Cultivation), Xi’an, People’s Republic of China
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Chinese Medicine Fundamentals and New Drugs Research, Xi’an, People’s Republic of China
- Shaanxi Collaborative Innovation Center of Chinese Medicinal Resources Industrialization, Xi’an, People’s Republic of China
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2
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Kaur G, Devi S, Sharma A, Sood P. Pharmacological insights and role of bufalin (bufadienolides) in inflammation modulation: a narrative review. Inflammopharmacology 2024:10.1007/s10787-024-01517-9. [PMID: 39012431 DOI: 10.1007/s10787-024-01517-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2024] [Accepted: 06/24/2024] [Indexed: 07/17/2024]
Abstract
Bufadienolides, specifically bufalin, have garnered attention for their potential therapeutic application in modulating inflammatory pathways. Bufalin is derived from toad venom and exhibits promising anti-inflammatory properties. Its anti-inflammatory effects have been demonstrated by influencing crucial signaling pathways like NF-B, MAPK, and JAK-STAT, resulting in the inhibition of pro-inflammatory substances like cytokines, chemokines, and adhesion molecules. Bufalin blocks inflammasome activation and reduces oxidative stress, hence increasing its anti-inflammatory properties. Bufalin has shown effectiveness in reducing inflammation-related diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular problems, and autoimmune ailments in preclinical investigations. Furthermore, producing new approaches of medication delivery and combining therapies with bufalin shows potential for improving its effectiveness and reducing adverse effects. This review explores the pharmacological effects and mechanistic approaches of bufalin as an anti-inflammatory agent, which further highlights its potential for therapy and offers the basis for further study on its therapeutic application in inflammation-related disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gagandeep Kaur
- Chitkara University School of Pharmacy, Chitkara University, Baddi, Himachal Pradesh, India
| | - Sushma Devi
- Chitkara College of Pharmacy, Chitkara University, Rajpura, Punjab, India.
| | - Akhil Sharma
- Chitkara College of Pharmacy, Chitkara University, Rajpura, Punjab, India
| | - Parul Sood
- Chitkara University School of Pharmacy, Chitkara University, Baddi, Himachal Pradesh, India
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Lawrence PJ, Burns B, Ning X. Enhancing drug and cell line representations via contrastive learning for improved anti-cancer drug prioritization. NPJ Precis Oncol 2024; 8:106. [PMID: 38762647 PMCID: PMC11102516 DOI: 10.1038/s41698-024-00589-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2023] [Accepted: 03/22/2024] [Indexed: 05/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Due to cancer's complex nature and variable response to therapy, precision oncology informed by omics sequence analysis has become the current standard of care. However, the amount of data produced for each patient makes it difficult to quickly identify the best treatment regimen. Moreover, limited data availability has hindered computational methods' abilities to learn patterns associated with effective drug-cell line pairs. In this work, we propose the use of contrastive learning to improve learned drug and cell line representations by preserving relationship structures associated with drug mechanisms of action and cell line cancer types. In addition to achieving enhanced performance relative to a state-of-the-art method, we find that classifiers using our learned representations exhibit a more balanced reliance on drug- and cell line-derived features when making predictions. This facilitates more personalized drug prioritizations that are informed by signals related to drug resistance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick J Lawrence
- Biomedical Informatics Department, The Ohio State University, 1800 Cannon Drive, Lincoln Tower 250, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA
| | - Benjamin Burns
- Computer Science and Engineering Department, The Ohio State University, 2015 Neil Avenue, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA
| | - Xia Ning
- Biomedical Informatics Department, The Ohio State University, 1800 Cannon Drive, Lincoln Tower 250, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA.
- Computer Science and Engineering Department, The Ohio State University, 2015 Neil Avenue, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA.
- Translational Data Analytics Institute, The Ohio State University, 1760 Neil Avenue, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA.
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Ye Q, Zhou X, Ren H, Han F, Lin R, Li J. An overview of the past decade of bufalin in the treatment of refractory and drug-resistant cancers: current status, challenges, and future perspectives. Front Pharmacol 2023; 14:1274336. [PMID: 37860119 PMCID: PMC10582727 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2023.1274336] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 09/25/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Profound progress has been made in cancer treatment in the past three decades. However, drug resistance remains prevalent and a critical challenge. Drug resistance can be attributed to oncogenes mutations, activated defensive mechanisms, ATP-bind cassette transporters overexpression, cancer stem cells, etc. Chinese traditional medicine toad venom has been used for centuries for different diseases, including resistant cancers. Bufalin is one of the bufadienolides in toad venom that has been extensively studied for its potential in refractory and drug-resistant cancer treatments in vitro and in vivo. In this work, we would like to critically review the progress made in the past decade (2013-2022) of bufalin in overcoming drug resistance in cancers. Generally, bufalin shows high potential in killing certain refractory and resistant cancer cells via multiple mechanisms. More importantly, bufalin can work as a chemo-sensitizer that enhances the sensitivity of certain conventional and targeted therapies at low concentrations. In addition, the development of bufalin derivatives was also briefly summarized and discussed. We also analyzed the obstacles and challenges and provided possible solutions for future perspectives. We hope that the collective information may help evoke more effort for more in-depth studies and evaluation of bufalin in both lab and possible clinical trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qingmei Ye
- Hainan General Hospital & Hainan Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, Hainan, China
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Medicinal Resource Chemistry of Ministry of Education, Key Laboratory of Tropical Medicinal Plant Chemistry of Hainan Province, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou, Hainan, China
| | - Xin Zhou
- The Fifth People’s Hospital of Hainan Province & Affiliated Dermatology Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, Hainan, China
| | - Han Ren
- Hainan General Hospital & Hainan Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, Hainan, China
| | - Fangxuan Han
- Hainan General Hospital & Hainan Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, Hainan, China
| | - Rong Lin
- Hubei Province Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Resource and Chemistry, Department of Pharmacy, Hubei University of Chinese Medicine, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Juan Li
- Hubei Province Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Medicine Resource and Chemistry, Department of Pharmacy, Hubei University of Chinese Medicine, Wuhan, Hubei, China
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Ye Q, Zhou X, Han F, Zheng C. Toad venom-derived bufadienolides and their therapeutic application in prostate cancers: Current status and future directions. Front Chem 2023; 11:1137547. [PMID: 37007051 PMCID: PMC10060886 DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2023.1137547] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2023] [Accepted: 03/07/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide. Specially, the high incidence rate and prevalence of drug resistance have rendered prostate cancer (PCa) a great threat to men’s health. Novel modalities with different structures or mechanisms are in urgent need to overcome these two challenges. Traditional Chinese medicine toad venom-derived agents (TVAs) have shown to possess versatile bioactivities in treating certain diseases including PCa. In this work, we attempted to have an overview of bufadienolides, the major bioactive components in TVAs, in the treatment of PCa in the past decade, including their derivatives developed by medicinal chemists to antagonize certain drawbacks of bufadienolides such as innate toxic effect to normal cells. Generally, bufadienolides can effectively induce apoptosis and suppress PCa cells in-vitro and in-vivo, majorly mediated by regulating certain microRNAs/long non-coding RNAs, or by modulating key pro-survival and pro-metastasis players in PCa. Importantly, critical obstacles and challenges using TVAs will be discussed and possible solutions and future perspectives will also be presented in this review. Further in-depth studies are clearly needed to decipher the mechanisms, e.g., targets and pathways, toxic effects and fully reveal their application. The information collected in this work may help evoke more effects in developing bufadienolides as therapeutic agents in PCa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qingmei Ye
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Medicinal Resource Chemistry of Ministry of Education, Key Laboratory of Tropical Medicinal Plant Chemistry of Hainan Province, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou, Hainan, China
- Hainan General Hospital & Hainan Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, Hainan, China
| | - Xin Zhou
- The Fifth People’s Hospital of Hainan Province & Affiliated Dermatology Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, Hainan, China
| | - Fangxuan Han
- Hainan General Hospital & Hainan Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, Hainan, China
| | - Caijuan Zheng
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Medicinal Resource Chemistry of Ministry of Education, Key Laboratory of Tropical Medicinal Plant Chemistry of Hainan Province, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou, Hainan, China
- *Correspondence: Caijuan Zheng,
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Liu J, Dong L, Zhu Y, Dong B, Sha J, Zhu HH, Pan J, Xue W. Prostate cancer treatment - China's perspective. Cancer Lett 2022; 550:215927. [PMID: 36162714 DOI: 10.1016/j.canlet.2022.215927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2022] [Revised: 09/07/2022] [Accepted: 09/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Prostate cancer (PCa) incidence and mortality have rapidly increased in China. Notably, unique epidemiological characteristics of PCa are found in the Chinese PCa population, including a low but rising incidence and an inferior but improving disease prognosis. Consequently, the current treatment landscape of PCa in China demonstrates distinct features. Establishing a more thorough understanding of the characteristics of Chinese patients may help provide novel insights into potential treatment strategies for PCa patients. Herein, we review the epidemiological status and differences in treatment modalities of Chinese PCa patients. In addition, we discuss the underlying socioeconomic and biological factors that contribute to such diversity and further propose directions for future efforts in optimizing the PCa treatment in China.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiazhou Liu
- Department of Urology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200127, China
| | - Liang Dong
- Department of Urology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200127, China
| | - Yinjie Zhu
- Department of Urology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200127, China
| | - Baijun Dong
- Department of Urology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200127, China
| | - Jianjun Sha
- Department of Urology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200127, China
| | - Helen He Zhu
- Department of Urology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200127, China; State Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Renji-Med-X Stem Cell Research Center, Department of Urology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine and School of Biomedical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200127, China
| | - Jiahua Pan
- Department of Urology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200127, China.
| | - Wei Xue
- Department of Urology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200127, China.
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Soumoy L, Ghanem GE, Saussez S, Journe F. Bufalin for an innovative therapeutic approach against cancer. Pharmacol Res 2022; 184:106442. [PMID: 36096424 DOI: 10.1016/j.phrs.2022.106442] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2022] [Revised: 08/30/2022] [Accepted: 09/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Bufalin is an endogenous cardiotonic steroid, first discovered in toad venom but also found in the plasma of healthy humans, with anti-tumour activities in different cancer types. The current review is focused on its mechanisms of action and highlights its very large spectrum of effects both in vitro and in vivo. All leads to the conclusion that bufalin mediates its effects by affecting all the hallmarks of cancer and seems restricted to cancer cells avoiding side effects. Bufalin decreases cancer cell proliferation by acting on the cell cycle and inducing different mechanisms of cell death including apoptosis, necroptosis, autophagy and senescence. Bufalin also moderates metastasis formation by blocking migration and invasion as well as angiogenesis and by inducing a phenotype switch towards differentiation and decreasing cancer cell stemness. Regarding its various mechanisms of action in cancer cells, bufalin blocks overactivated signalling pathways and modifies cell metabolism. Moreover, bufalin gained lately a huge interest in the field of drug resistance by both reversing various drug resistance mechanisms and affecting the immune microenvironment. Together, these data support bufalin as a quite promising new anti-cancer drug candidate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Soumoy
- Laboratory of Human Anatomy & Experimental Oncology, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of Mons (UMONS), 7000 Mons, Belgium.
| | - Ghanem E Ghanem
- Laboratory of Clinical and Experimental Oncology, Institut Jules Bordet, Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), 1000 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Sven Saussez
- Laboratory of Human Anatomy & Experimental Oncology, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of Mons (UMONS), 7000 Mons, Belgium
| | - Fabrice Journe
- Laboratory of Human Anatomy & Experimental Oncology, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of Mons (UMONS), 7000 Mons, Belgium; Laboratory of Clinical and Experimental Oncology, Institut Jules Bordet, Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), 1000 Brussels, Belgium.
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Shao H, Li B, Li H, Gao L, Zhang C, Sheng H, Zhu L. Novel Strategies for Solubility and Bioavailability Enhancement of Bufadienolides. Molecules 2021; 27:51. [PMID: 35011278 PMCID: PMC8746454 DOI: 10.3390/molecules27010051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2021] [Revised: 12/19/2021] [Accepted: 12/20/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Toad venom contains a large number of bufadienolides, which have a variety of pharmacological activities, including antitumor, cardiovascular, anti-inflammatory, analgesic and immunomodulatory effects. The strong antitumor effect of bufadienolides has attracted considerable attention in recent years, but the clinical application of bufadienolides is limited due to their low solubility and poor bioavailability. In order to overcome these shortcomings, many strategies have been explored, such as structural modification, solid dispersion, cyclodextrin inclusion, microemulsion and nanodrug delivery systems, etc. In this review, we have tried to summarize the pharmacological activities and structure-activity relationship of bufadienolides. Furthermore, the strategies for solubility and bioavailability enhancement of bufadienolides also are discussed. This review can provide a basis for further study on bufadienolides.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Huagang Sheng
- College of Pharmacy, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 4655 Daxue Road, Jinan 250355, China; (H.S.); (B.L.); (H.L.); (L.G.); (C.Z.)
| | - Liqiao Zhu
- College of Pharmacy, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 4655 Daxue Road, Jinan 250355, China; (H.S.); (B.L.); (H.L.); (L.G.); (C.Z.)
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