Anticancer Activity and Molecular Targets of IPiper cernuum/I Substances in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma Models

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a worldwide public health problem, with high morbidity and mortality rates. The development of new drugs to treat OSCC is paramount. Piper plant species have shown many biological activities. In the present study, we show that dichloromethane partition of Piper...

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Published in:Biomedicines 2023-07, Vol.11 (7)
Main Authors: Machado, Thaíssa Queiróz, Lima, Maria Emanuelle Damazio, da Silva, Rafael Carriello, Macedo, Arthur Ladeira, de Queiroz, Lucas Nicolau, Angrisani, Bianca Roberta Peres, da Fonseca, Anna Carolina Carvalho, Câmara, Priscilla Rodrigues, Rabelo, Vitor Von-Held, Carollo, Carlos Alexandre, de Lima Moreira, Davyson, de Almeida, Elan Cardozo Paes, Vasconcelos, Thatyana Rocha Alves, Abreu, Paula Alvarez, Valverde, Alessandra Leda, Robbs, Bruno Kaufmann
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cancer
Care and treatment
Cell death
Chromatography
Drug therapy
Health aspects
Squamous cell carcinoma
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Summary:Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a worldwide public health problem, with high morbidity and mortality rates. The development of new drugs to treat OSCC is paramount. Piper plant species have shown many biological activities. In the present study, we show that dichloromethane partition of Piper cernuum (PCLd) is nontoxic in chronic treatment in mice, reduces the amount of atypia in tongues of chemically induced OSCC, and significantly increases animal survival. To identify the main active compounds, chromatographic purification of PCLd was performed, where fractions 09.07 and 14.05 were the most active and selective. These fractions promoted cell death by apoptosis characterized by phosphatidyl serine exposition, DNA fragmentation, and activation of effector caspase-3/7 and were nonhemolytic. LC–DAD–MS/MS analysis did not propose matching spectra for the 09.07 fraction, suggesting compounds not yet known. However, aporphine alkaloids were annotated in fraction 14.05, which are being described for the first time in P. cernuum and corroborate the observed cytotoxic activity. Putative molecular targets were determined for these alkaloids, in silico, where the androgen receptor (AR), CHK1, CK2, DYRK1A, EHMT2, LXRβ, and VEGFR2 were the most relevant. The results obtained from P. cernuum fractions point to promising compounds as new preclinical anticancer candidates.
ISSN:2227-9059
2227-9059
DOI:10.3390/biomedicines11071914