Abstract
Marine cyanobacteria have been considered a rich source of secondary metabolites with potential biotechnological applications, namely in the pharmacological field. Chemically diverse compounds were found to induce cytoxicity, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial activities. The potential of marine cyanobacteria as anticancer agents has however been the most explored and, besides cytotoxicity in tumor cell lines, several compounds have emerged as templates for the development of new anticancer drugs. The mechanisms implicated in the cytotoxicity of marine cyanobacteria compounds in tumor cell lines are still largely overlooked but several studies point to an implication in apoptosis. This association has been related to several apoptotic indicators such as cell cycle arrest, mitochondrial dysfunctions and oxidative damage, alterations in caspase cascade, alterations in specific proteins levels and alterations in the membrane sodium dynamics. In the present paper a compilation of the described marine cyanobacterial compounds with potential anticancer properties is presented and a review on the implication of apoptosis as the mechanism of cell death is discussed.
Highlights
Cyanobacteria are a diverse group of prokaryotic organisms that can exist in a wide range of ecosystems
Since several marine cyanobacteria compounds interact with important molecular targets involved in anticancer activity leading to a controlled death of tumor cells, this review aims to resume the marine cyanobacterial products that were found to inhibit the proliferation of cancer cell lines, namely by inducing apoptotic cell death
Cryptophycin 52, a macrocyclic depsipeptide analogue of the naturally occurring cryptophycins isolated from the marine cyanobacteria Nostoc spp. [113], and calothrixin A, a indolophenanthridine isolated from Calothrix, are two examples of bioactive metabolites that induced, in different human cancer cell lines, a cell cycle arrest in G2/M phase [45]
Summary
Margarida Costa 1, João Costa-Rodrigues 2, Maria Helena Fernandes 2, Piedade Barros 3, Vitor Vasconcelos 1,4 and Rosário Martins 1,3,5,*. Laboratory of Pharmacology and Cellular Biocompatibility, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Porto. Faculty of Sciences, Porto University, Rua do Campo Alegre, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal. Received: 6 August 2012; in revised form: 11 September 2012 / Accepted: 18 September 2012 /
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