ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Oral cancer is a significant health problem worldwide. Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a malignant neoplasm of epithelial cells that mostly affects different anatomical sites in the head and neck and derives from the squamous epithelium or displays similar morphological characteristics. Generally, OSCC is often the end stage of several changes in the stratified squamous epithelium, which begin as epithelial dysplasia and progress by breaking the basement membrane and invading adjacent tissues. Several plant-based drugs with potent anti-cancer effects are considered inexpensive treatments with limited side effects for cancer and other diseases. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this review is to explore whether some Brazilian plant extracts or constituents exhibit anti-tumorigenic activity or have a cytotoxic effect on human oral carcinoma cells. METHODS: Briefly, OSCC and several metabolites derived from Brazilian plants (i.e., flavonoids, vinblastine, irinotecan, etoposide and paclitaxel) were used as keywords to search the literature on PubMed, GenBank and GeneCards. RESULTS: The results showed that these five chemical compounds found in Cerrado Biome plants exhibit anti-neoplastic effects. Evaluating the compounds revealed that they play a main role in the regulation of cell proliferation. CONCLUSION: Preserving and utilising the biodiversity of our planet, especially in unique ecosystems, such as the Cerrado Biome, may prove essential to preserving and promoting human health in modern contexts.
Subject(s)
Anticarcinogenic Agents/pharmacology , Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic/pharmacology , Carcinogenesis/drug effects , Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/drug therapy , Mouth Neoplasms/drug therapy , Neoplasm Proteins/genetics , Anticarcinogenic Agents/chemistry , Anticarcinogenic Agents/isolation & purification , Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic/chemistry , Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic/isolation & purification , Brazil , Carcinogenesis/genetics , Carcinogenesis/metabolism , Carcinogenesis/pathology , Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/genetics , Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/metabolism , Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/pathology , Cell Proliferation/drug effects , Computational Biology/methods , Etoposide/chemistry , Etoposide/isolation & purification , Etoposide/pharmacology , Flavonoids/chemistry , Flavonoids/isolation & purification , Flavonoids/pharmacology , Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic , Humans , Irinotecan/chemistry , Irinotecan/isolation & purification , Irinotecan/pharmacology , Mouth Neoplasms/genetics , Mouth Neoplasms/metabolism , Mouth Neoplasms/pathology , Neoplasm Proteins/antagonists & inhibitors , Neoplasm Proteins/metabolism , Paclitaxel/chemistry , Paclitaxel/isolation & purification , Paclitaxel/pharmacology , Plant Extracts/chemistry , Plants, Medicinal , Vinblastine/chemistry , Vinblastine/isolation & purification , Vinblastine/pharmacologyABSTRACT
Cytotoxicity-guided fractionation of the 80% EtOH extract of Tithonia diversifolia has resulted in the isolation of twelve sesquiterpenoids (1-12), including three new ones (4, 10, 12), and three known flavonoids (13-15). The structures of the new compounds were determined by analysis of their spectroscopic data. The isolated compounds showed cytotoxic activity against HL-60 leukemia cells with IC(50) values ranging from 0.13 to 13.0 microM, when etoposide used as a positive control gave an IC(50) value of 0.43 microM. The cancer growth inhibitory property of 9, the main cytotoxic compound in T. diversifolia, was examined using a disease-oriented panel composed of 39 human cancer cell lines in the Japanese Foundation for Cancer Research.