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Fulltext Combinatorial Cytotoxic Effects of Damnacanthal and Doxorubicin against Human Breast Cancer MCF-7 Cells in Vitro

Aziz MY, Abu N, Yeap SK, Ho WY, Omar AR, Ismail NH, et al.

Molecules, 2016 Sep 14;21(9).
PMID: 27649120 DOI: 10.3390/molecules21091228

Despite progressive research being done on drug therapy to treat breast cancer, the number of patients succumbing to the disease is still a major issue. Combinatorial treatment using different drugs and herbs to treat cancer patients is of major interest in scientists nowadays. Doxorubicin is one of the most used drugs to treat breast cancer patients. The combination of doxorubicin to other drugs such as tamoxifen has been reported. Nevertheless, the combination of doxorubicin with a natural product-derived agent has not been studied yet. Morinda citrifolia has always been sought out for its remarkable remedies. Damnacanthal, an anthraquinone that can be extracted from the roots of Morinda citrifolia is a promising compound that possesses a variety of biological properties. This study aimed to study the therapeutic effects of damnacanthal in combination with doxorubicin in breast cancer cells. Collectively, the combination of both these molecules enhanced the efficacy of induced cell death in MCF-7 as evidenced by the MTT assay, cell cycle, annexin V and expression of apoptosis-related genes and proteins. The effectiveness of doxorubicin as an anti-cancer drug was increased upon addition of damnacanthal. These results could provide a promising approach to treat breast cancer patients.

Matched MeSH terms: Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols/chemistry
Fulltext Synergistic anticancer effects of a bioactive subfraction of Strobilanthes crispus and tamoxifen on MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer cell lines

Yaacob NS, Kamal NN, Norazmi MN

BMC Complement Altern Med, 2014;14:252.
PMID: 25034326 DOI: 10.1186/1472-6882-14-252

Development of tumour resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs and concerns over their toxic effects has led to the increased use of medicinal herbs or natural products by cancer patients. Strobilanthes crispus is a traditional remedy for many ailments including cancer. Its purported anticancer effects have led to the commercialization of the plant leaves as medicinal herbal tea, although the scientific basis for its use has not been established. We previously reported that a bioactive subfraction of Strobilanthes crispus leaves (SCS) exhibit potent cytotoxic activity against human breast cancer cell lines. The current study investigates the effect of this subfraction on cell death activities induced by the antiestrogen drug, tamoxifen, in estrogen receptor-responsive and nonresponsive breast cancer cells.

Matched MeSH terms: Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols/chemistry
Fulltext Evaluation of cytotoxic and chemotherapeutic properties of boldine in breast cancer using in vitro and in vivo models

Paydar M, Kamalidehghan B, Wong YL, Wong WF, Looi CY, Mustafa MR

Drug Des Devel Ther, 2014;8:719-33.
PMID: 24944509 DOI: 10.2147/DDDT.S58178

To date, plants have been the major source of anticancer drugs. Boldine is a natural alkaloid commonly found in the leaves and bark of Peumus boldus. In this study, we found that boldine potently inhibited the viability of the human invasive breast cancer cell lines, MDA-MB-231 (48-hour IC₅₀ 46.5±3.1 μg/mL) and MDA-MB-468 (48-hour IC₅₀ 50.8±2.7 μg/mL). Boldine had a cytotoxic effect and induced apoptosis in breast cancer cells as indicated by a higher amount of lactate dehydrogenase released, membrane permeability, and DNA fragmentation. In addition, we demonstrated that boldine induced cell cycle arrest at G2/M phase. The anticancer mechanism is associated with disruption of the mitochondrial membrane potential and release of cytochrome c in MDA-MB-231. Boldine selectively induced activation of caspase-9 and caspase-3/7, but not caspase-8. We also found that boldine could inhibit nuclear factor kappa B activation, a key molecule in tumor progression and metastasis. In addition, protein array and Western blotting analysis showed that treatment with boldine resulted in downregulation of Bcl-2 and heat shock protein 70 and upregulation of Bax in the MDA-MB-231 cell line. An acute toxicity study in rats revealed that boldine at a dose of 100 mg/kg body weight was well tolerated. Moreover, intraperitoneal injection of boldine (50 or 100 mg/kg) significantly reduced tumor size in an animal model of breast cancer. Our results suggest that boldine is a potentially useful agent for the treatment of breast cancer.

Matched MeSH terms: Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols/chemistry
Fulltext Inactivation of nuclear factor κB by MIP-based drug combinations augments cell death of breast cancer cells

Subramaniam M, Liew SK, In L, Awang K, Ahmed N, Nagoor NH

Drug Des Devel Ther, 2018;12:1053-1063.
PMID: 29750018 DOI: 10.2147/DDDT.S141925

Background: Drug combination therapy to treat cancer is a strategic approach to increase successful treatment rate. Optimizing combination regimens is vital to increase therapeutic efficacy with minimal side effects.
Materials and methods: In the present study, we evaluated the in vitro cytotoxicity of double and triple combinations consisting of 1'S-1'-acetoxychavicol acetate (ACA), Mycobacterium indicus pranii (MIP) and cisplatin (CDDP) against 14 various human cancer cell lines to address the need for more effective therapy. Our data show synergistic effects in MCF-7 cells treated with MIP:ACA, MIP:CDDP and MIP:ACA:CDDP combinations. The type of interaction between MIP, ACA and CDDP was evaluated based on combination index being <0.8 for synergistic effect. Identifying the mechanism of cell death based on previous studies involved intrinsic apoptosis and nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) and tested in Western blot analysis. Inactivation of NF-κB was confirmed by p65 and IκBα, while intrinsic apoptosis pathway activation was confirmed by caspase-9 and Apaf-1 expression.
Results: All combinations confirmed intrinsic apoptosis activation and NF-κB inactivation.
Conclusion: Double and triple combination regimens that target induction of the same death mechanism with reduced dosage of each drug could potentially be clinically beneficial in reducing dose-related toxicities.

Matched MeSH terms: Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols/chemistry