Abstract
Moringa oleifera (M. oleifera), which belongs to the Moringaceae family, is a common herb, rich in plant compounds. It has a variety of bioactive compounds that can act as antioxidants, antibiotics, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer agents, etc., which can be obtained in different body parts of M. oleifera. Isothiocyanates (ITCs) from M. oleifera are one class of these active substances that can inhibit cancer proliferation and promote cancer cell apoptosis through multiple signaling pathways, thus curbing cancer migration and metastasis, at the same time they have little adverse effect on normal cells. There are multiple variants of ITCs in M. oleifera, but the predominant phytochemical is 4-(α-L-rhamnosyloxy)benzyl isothiocyanate, also known as moringa isothiocyanate (MIC-1). Studies have shown that MIC-1 has the possibility to be used clinically for the treatment of diabetes, neurologic diseases, obesity, ulcerative colitis, and several cancer types. In this review, we focus on the molecular mechanisms underlying the anti-cancer and anti-chronic disease effects of MIC-1, current trends, and future direction of MIC-1 based treatment strategies. This review combines the relevant literature of the past 10 years, in order to provide more comprehensive information of MIC-1 and to fully exploit its potentiality in the clinical settings.
Highlights
According to the latest survey released by the International Agency for Research on Cancer of the World Health Organization, the number of cancer deaths worldwide is rising [1], and the methods commonly used for cancer treatment are percutaneous ablation treatments, surgical resection, and chemotherapy [2,3,4]
A study of human non-small-cell lung cancer cell line (A549) by Xie et al [51] found that the alkaloid extract of M. oleifera significantly inhibited p-JAK2 and p-STAT3 and has dose-dependent effects, these results suggest that the M. oleifera leaf extract works by inhibiting the JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway, it is closely related to the proliferation, angiogenesis, invasion, and migration of non-small-cell lung cancer, which induced the apoptosis and cell cycle block of A549 cells
Specific human apoptosis-related target genes for plant miRNA were identified by Potestà et al [55]. They found seed water extracts can lead to a decrease in B-cell lymphoma 2 (BCL2) protein expression in tumor cells and a reduced mitochondrial membrane potential, and both are associated with cell apoptosis
Summary
According to the latest survey released by the International Agency for Research on Cancer of the World Health Organization, the number of cancer deaths worldwide is rising [1], and the methods commonly used for cancer treatment are percutaneous ablation treatments, surgical resection, and chemotherapy [2,3,4]. While studying M. oleifera leaves, the researchers found that M. oleifera leaf extract could affect the growth of cancer cells through different signaling pathways. The research by Luetragoon et al [48] found that the extract of M. oleifera leaf can up-regulate cysteine, downregulate the anti-apoptotic factors, and induce apoptosis of cancer cells. Specific human apoptosis-related target genes for plant miRNA were identified by Potestà et al [55] They found seed water extracts can lead to a decrease in BCL2 protein expression in tumor cells and a reduced mitochondrial membrane potential, and both are associated with cell apoptosis. The results show that the bark extract of M. oleifera has anti-cancer activity and can be used to develop new drugs for breast cancer and colorectal cancer, but the specific mechanism of action needs to be further studied. It is speculated from these results that MIC-1 appears to be less toxic than other ITCs [91]
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