The anticancer effects and mechanisms of fucoxanthin combined with other drugs.

PURPOSE

Fucoxanthin (Fx) is a characteristic carotenoid present in brown seaweed that has been shown to have various benefits, including anticancer effects. In vitro studies demonstrated these various effects, including the suppression of cell viability, the promotion of apoptosis, and antiangiogenic, antiproliferative, and antimetastatic activity. Interestingly, combinations of Fx with other drugs have better effects than either Fx or other drugs alone. Although the antiproliferative and cancer prevention activities of the combination of Fx and other drugs are still unclear, several effects have been discovered, including the induction of apoptosis, cell cycle arrest at G1/G0, enhanced gap junctional intercellular communication, and the induction of autophagy via various mechanisms, such as decreasing P-gp, activating the CYP3A4 promoter, increasing reactive oxygen species and cellular uptake and suppressing the PI3K/Akt/NFκB pathway. In this review, we address the anticancer effects and mechanisms of the combination of Fx and other drugs in different types of cancer.

METHODS

The relevant literature from PubMed and Web of Science databases is reviewed in this article.

RESULTS

Fx combined with other drugs could enhance the effect of both Fx and the other drug or reduce the dose without reducing the effect, which may create more effective and less harmful therapeutic strategies.

CONCLUSION

Fx combined with other drugs has significant anticancer effects by various mechanisms and could be a potential therapeutic strategy for different types of cancer.