Targeting Cancer Stem Cells by Dietary Agents: An Important Therapeutic Strategy against Human Malignancies.

Mahshid Deldar Abad Paskeh, Shafagh Asadi, Amirhossein Zabolian, Hossein Saleki, Mohammad Amin Khoshbakht, Sina Sabet, Mohamad Javad Naghdi, Mehrdad Hashemi, Kiavash Hushmandi, Milad Ashrafizadeh, Sepideh Mirzaei, Ali Zarrabi, Gautam Sethi

Journal: International journal of molecular sciences 2021;22(21):11669

PMID: 34769099

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Abstract

As a multifactorial disease, treatment of cancer depends on understanding unique mechanisms involved in its progression. The cancer stem cells (CSCs) are responsible for tumor stemness and by enhancing colony formation, proliferation as well as metastasis, and these cells can also mediate resistance to therapy. Furthermore, the presence of CSCs leads to cancer recurrence and therefore their complete eradication can have immense therapeutic benefits. The present review focuses on targeting CSCs by natural products in cancer therapy. The growth and colony formation capacities of CSCs have been reported can be attenuated by the dietary agents. These compounds can induce apoptosis in CSCs and reduce tumor migration and invasion via EMT inhibition. A variety of molecular pathways including STAT3, Wnt/β-catenin, Sonic Hedgehog, Gli1 and NF-κB undergo down-regulation by dietary agents in suppressing CSC features. Upon exposure to natural agents, a significant decrease occurs in levels of CSC markers including CD44, CD133, ALDH1, Oct4 and Nanog to impair cancer stemness. Furthermore, CSC suppression by dietary agents can enhance sensitivity of tumors to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. In addition to in vitro studies, as well as experiments on the different preclinical models have shown capacity of natural products in suppressing cancer stemness. Furthermore, use of nanostructures for improving therapeutic impact of dietary agents is recommended to rapidly translate preclinical findings for clinical use.

Address: Department of Genetics, Faculty of Advanced Science and Technology, Tehran Medical Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Tehran 1916893813, Iran.; Farhikhtegan Medical Convergence Sciences Research Center, Farhikhtegan Hospital Tehran Medical Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Tehran 1916893813, Iran.; Asu Vanda Gene Industrial Research Company, Tehran 1533666398, Iran.; Resident of Orthopedics, Department of Orthopedics, School of Medicine, 5th Azar Hospital, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan 4934174515, Iran.; Young Researchers and Elite Club, Tehran Medical Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Tehran 1916893813, Iran.; Department of Food Hygiene and Quality Control, Division of Epidemiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, Tehran 1419963114, Iran.; Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Sabanci University, Orta Mahalle, Üniversite Caddesi No. 27, Orhanlı, Istanbul 34956, Turkey.; Sabanci University Nanotechnology Research and Application Center (SUNUM), Istanbul 34956, Turkey.; Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch, Tehran 1477893855, Iran.; Sabanci University Nanotechnology Research and Application Center (SUNUM), Istanbul 34956, Turkey.; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Istinye University, Sariyer, Istanbul 34396, Turkey.; Department of Pharmacology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117600, Singapore.; Cancer Translational Research Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117600, Singapore.

DOI: 10.3390/ijms222111669

Link outs

Free resources

Full Text Sources:

Medical:

https://medlineplus.gov/herbalmedicine.html

Miscellaneous:

https://assays.cancer.gov/CPTAC-1275

Research Materials:

https://antibodies.cancer.gov/detail/CPTC-NANOG-2

MeSH Terms: Humans, Neoplasms, Neoplastic Stem Cells, Phytochemicals, Phytotherapy, Plant Extracts