anti-metastatic effect | Botanical Oncology

Cancer: Colorectal, lung

Action: Anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant, chemo-preventive, anti-metastatic effect

Pinosylvin is a naturally occurring chemo-preventive trans-stilbenoid mainly found in plants of the Pinus genus (Pinus (L.) and Gnetum cleistostachyum (C. Y. Cheng)).

Anti-cancer, Anti-inflammatory and Anti-oxidant

Stilbenes are small molecular weight (approximately 200-300 g/mol), naturally occurring compounds and are found in a wide range of plant sources, aromatherapy products, and dietary supplements. These molecules are synthesized via the phenylpropanoid pathway and share some structural similarities to estrogen. Upon environmental threat, the plant host activates the phenylpropanoid pathway and stilbene structures are produced and subsequently secreted. Stilbenes act as natural protective agents to defend the plant against viral and microbial attack, excessive ultraviolet exposure, and disease. Stilbene compounds, piceatannol, pinosylvin, rhapontigenin, and pterostilbene possess potent anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant activities (Roupe et al., 2006).

Colorectal

Pinosylvin, a naturally occurring trans-stilbenoid mainly found in Pinus species, has exhibited a potential cancer chemo-preventive activity. The anti-proliferative activity of pinosylvin was investigated in human colorectal HCT 116 cancer cells.

Pinosylvin was also found to attenuate the activation of proteins involved in focal adhesion kinase (FAK)/c-Src/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) signaling, and phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt/ glycogen synthase kinase 3β (GSK-3β) signaling pathway. Subsequently, pinosylvin suppressed the nuclear translocation of β-catenin, one of downstream molecules of PI3K/Akt/GSK-3β signaling, and these events led to the sequential down-regulation of β-catenin-mediated transcription of target genes including BMP4, ID2, survivin, cyclin D1, MMP7, and c-Myc. These findings demonstrate that the anti-proliferative activity of pinosylvin might be associated with the cell-cycle arrest and down-regulation of cell proliferation regulating signaling pathways in human colorectal cancer cells (Park et al., 2013).

Anti-metastatic

Pinosylvin, a naturally occurring trans-stilbenoid mainly found in Pinus species, exhibits a potential cancer chemo-preventive activity and also inhibits the growth of various human cancer cell lines via the regulation of cell-cycle progression. Pinosylvin suppressed the expression of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2, MMP-9 and membrane type 1-MMP in cultured human fibrosarcoma HT1080 cells. Park et al. (2012) found that pinosylvin inhibited the migration of HT1080 cells in colony dispersion and wound healing assay systems.

The analysis of tumor in lung tissues indicated that the anti-metastatic effect of pinosylvin coincided with the down-regulation of MMP-9 and cyclooxygenase-2 expression, and phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and Akt. These data suggest that pinosylvin might be an effective inhibitor of tumor cell metastasis via modulation of MMPs.

References

Park EJ, Park HJ, Chung HJ, et al. (2012). Anti-metastatic activity of pinosylvin, a natural stilbenoid, is associated with the suppression of matrix metalloproteinases. J Nutr Biochem, 23(8):946-52. doi: 10.1016/j.jnutbio.2011.04.021.

Park EJ, Chung HJ, Park HJ, et al. (2013). Suppression of Src/ERK and GSK-3/ β-catenin signaling by pinosylvin inhibits the growth of human colorectal cancer cells. Food Chem Toxicol, 55:424-33. doi:10.1016/j.fct.2013.01.007.

Roupe KA, Remsberg CM, Yá–ez JA, Davies NM. (2006). Pharmacometrics of stilbenes: seguing towards the clinic. Curr Clin Pharmacol, 1(1):81-101.

Cancer: Lung cancer, melanoma

Action: Anti-metastatic

Acetoside is isolated from Stachys sieboldii (Miq), Arctostaphylos uva-ursi [(L.) Spreng, Cistanche deserticola (Ma).

Anti-metastatic; Lung Cancer

The anti-metastatic effect of acteoside, a phenylethanoid glycoside widely distributed in the plant kingdom, was examined with respect to lung metastasis using a mouse model injected with B16 melanoma cells intravenously. Administration of acteoside prolonged survival time significantly and the average survival time was 63.3 +/- 3.4d compared with 52.1 +/- 2.5d in control mice. This result suggests that acteoside showed suppressive effect on lung metastasis of B16 melanoma cells (Ohno et al., 2009).

Melanoma

Acteoside showed an inhibitory effect on tyrosinase activity and melanin synthesis in both cell-free assay systems and cultured B16F10 melanoma cells. Acteoside decreased levels of tyrosinase, tyrosinase-related protein-1 (TRP-1) and microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) proteins, whereas it increased ERK phosphorylation. Acteoside suppressed melanogenesis induced by α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone and showed UV-absorbing effects (Son et al., 2011). Acteoside also inhibited production of both melanin and cyclic AMP in cells stimulated by 1 micromol/l forskolin, an adenyl cyclase activator. Acteoside showed anti-oxidant activity in a cell-free DPPH (1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydroazyl) assay and inhibited generation of intracellular reactive oxygen species (Song & Sim., 2009).

References

Ohno T, Inoue M, Ogihara Y, Saracoglu I. (2012). Anti-metastatic activity of acteoside, a phenylethanoid glycoside. Biological & Pharmaceutical Bulletin, 25(5):666-8. doi: 10.1248/bpb.25.666

Song HS, Sim SS. (2009). Acteoside inhibits alpha-MSH-induced melanin production in B16 melanoma cells by inactivation of adenyl cyclase. J Pharm Pharmacol, 61(10):1347-51. doi: 10.1211/jpp/61.10.0011.

Son YO, Lee SA, Kim SS, et al. (2011). Acteoside inhibits melanogenesis in B16F10 cells through ERK activation and tyrosinase down-regulation. J Pharm Pharmacol, 63(10):1309-19. doi: 10.1111/j.2042-7158.2011.01335.x.