Current Cancer Drug Targets - Volume 14, Issue 4, 2014

Various natural agents, including grape seed extract (GSE), have shown considerable chemopreventive and anti-cancer efficacy against different cancers in pre-clinical studies; however, their specific protein targets are largely unknown and thus, their clinical usefulness is marred by limited scientific evidences about their direct cellular targets. Accordingly, herein, employing, for the first time, the recently developed drug affi Read More

Haem oxygenase-1 (HO-1) catalyses the rate-limiting step in haem degradation. All three metabolites resulting from haem degradation (carbon monoxide (CO), biliverdin and free iron) have anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic properties. HO-1 is a stress-inducible enzyme found extensively expressed in a vast variety of both human and murine cancers, where it serves as an essential survival molecule by modulating expressi Read More

Approximately 85% of pancreatic cancer patients suffer from glucose intolerance or even diabetes because high glucose levels can contribute to oxidative stress which promotes tumor development. As one of the reactive oxygen species (ROS)-regulating factors, thioredoxin-interacting protein (TXNIP), is involved in the maintenance of thioredoxin (TRX)-mediated redox regulation. In this study, we demonstrated that high Read More

In recent years, our knowledge regarding the metabolism of melanoma has greatly advanced and consequently new therapeutic strategies are being developed. This review is focused on metabolic pathways contributing to melanoma proliferation, the influence of BRAF inhibitors on those metabolic pathways and finally a presentation of potential therapeutic strategies aimed at blocking metabolic signaling pathways and th Read More

The αvβ3 integrin is highly expressed in prostate cancer (PCa), in which it is a key player in tumour invasion, angiogenesis and metastasis formation. Therefore, αvβ3 integrin is considered a very promising target for molecular imaging of PCa. This study tested the potential of the novel αvβ3 integrin affine agent [68Ga]NOTA-RGD in comparison with the established [18F]fluoroethylcholine (FEC) and [18F]fluorodeoxygluco Read More

The natural compound curcumin has been investigated as an anticancer agent in many cellular systems, in animal models and in the clinic. The overriding negative characteristics of curcumin are its low solubility, weak potency and poor bioavailability. We have examined the efficacy and mechanism of action of a synthetic curcumin analog, UBS109, in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. By nephelometry, this analog Read More

Study of the process of cancer initiation, growth and progression in altered gravity is of utmost importance considering the health status of researchers visiting in space and future scope of space tourism. Microgravity affects various cells in the body differently; however, the mechanisms of such effects are not understood completely. Therefore, it is imperative to explore various physiological and biochemical processes, pa Read More

Pancreatic cancer is one of the highly aggressive malignant diseases worldwide. To achieve better treatment outcome of pancreatic cancer, in the current study we explore the underlying molecular mechanism of drug resistance in pancreatic cancer cells. We found that resistance to gemcitabine is associated with epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) phenotype in a panel of pancreatic cancer cell lines. Notably, ge Read More