Abstract
The objective of this study was to carry out a systematic review of the substances isolated from the African medicinal plant Erythrina senegalensis, focusing on compounds harboring activities against cancer models detailed in depth herein at both in vitro and in vivo preclinical levels. The review was conducted through Pubmed and Google Scholar. Nineteen out of the forty-two secondary metabolites isolated to date from E. senegalensis displayed interesting in vitro and/or in vivo antitumor activities. They belonged to alkaloid (Erysodine), triterpenes (Erythrodiol, maniladiol, oleanolic acid), prenylated isoflavonoids (senegalensin, erysenegalensein E, erysenegalensein M, alpinumisoflavone, derrone, warangalone), flavonoids (erythrisenegalone, senegalensein, lupinifolin, carpachromene) and pterocarpans (erybraedine A, erybraedine C, phaseollin). Among the isoflavonoids called “erysenegalensein”, only erysenealenseins E and M have been tested for their anticancerous properties and turned out to be cytotoxic. Although the stem bark is the most frequently used part of the plant, all pterocarpans were isolated from roots and all alkaloids from seeds. The mechanisms of action of its metabolites include apoptosis, pyroptosis, autophagy and mitophagy via the modulation of cytoplasmic proteins, miRNA and enzymes involved in critical pathways deregulated in cancer. Alpinumisoflavone and oleanolic acid were studied in a broad spectrum of cancer models both in vitro and in preclinical models in vivo with promising results. Other metabolites, including carpachromen, phaseollin, erybraedin A, erysenegalensein M and maniladiol need to be further investigated, as they display potent in vitro effects.
Highlights
Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide, accounting for nearly 10 million deaths in 2020, 70% of which occurred in low- and middle-income countries due to late-stage discoveries, diagnosis inability and poor access to appropriate treatment [1]
We found around fifteen studies reporting the antitumor effects of Oleanolic Acid (OA) in preclinical cancer models
This study revealed that the identified secondary metabolites of the E. senegalensis belonged to six families, i.e., alkaloids, flavonoids, isoflavonoids, pterocarpans, triterpenes and coumarins
Summary
Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide, accounting for nearly 10 million deaths in 2020, 70% of which occurred in low- and middle-income countries due to late-stage discoveries, diagnosis inability and poor access to appropriate treatment [1]. The plant kingdom has always been an inexhaustible source of medicine and food for man. More than 3000 plants worldwide have been reported to have anticancer properties [2]. The plant kingdom has been the source or the inspiration for 208 anticancer drugs (41%) that have been marketed from 1981 to 2019 [3]. In the USA 40% of the approved molecules are natural compounds or inspired by them, from which, 74% are used as anti-cancer drugs [4]. Despite the rise in the development of targeted therapies against cancer, Nature is regaining interest in therapeutics in general and, in particular, those that can be used against cancer. Many substances of plant origin have been shown to display significant anticancer potential by targeting proteins that are deregulated in cancer [4,5]
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