ANTICANCER HERBS AND PHYTOCONSTITUENTS FROM NATURE: A SHORT REVIEW

ANTICANCER HERBS AND PHYTOCONSTITUENTS FROM NATURE: A SHORT REVIEW

Md. Shah Amran

Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh.

ABSTRACT: Cancer is a disease of cells where uncontrolled proliferation occurs leading to death of the incumbent. There is no effective vaccine for prevention and prophylaxis of cancer. Currently available anticancer allopathic drugs have a lot of disadvantages including frequent recurrence of the disease. In this perspective, nature could be a good alternative source of anticancer herbs and phytoconstituents that may prevent the proliferation of cells and even cure the cancer. This review summaries such herbs and phytoconstituents that could give good preventive and prophylactic effect as anticancer medication.

Keywords: Cancer, Herbs, Phytoconstituents, Anticancer therapy, Alternative medication

INTRODUCTION: Cancer is a pathological condition in which an abnormal and uncontrolled cell division and spread of cells occur within the body. Neoplastic cells and tissues are characterized by abnormal genetic content, altered chromosome and uncontrolled growth, usually accompanied by loss of cellular differentiation (Anaplasia). It is one of the most devastating killer diseases and is the 2^ndleading cause of death worldwide. Yearly about 17.9 million population become ill due to cancer and about 10 million deaths occur from cancer ^{1, 2}. Along with taking life, cancer increases the financial costas well as becoming financial burden for patients. There are a lot of factors that contribute to cancer. These are increase in aging population worldwide, unhygienic food & feeding habits and lack of proper physical exercise ^{3, 4}.

Cancer is not only a global financial burden for rich nations, it is also becoming burden in developing countries as well. There are many ways to prevent and treat the cancer. Among them, herbal medicines are utilized for mitigating the pathological conditions, inhibit metastasis and improve the immunity. These are applied to minimize the adverse effects coming from use of chemotherapy or radiotherapy. In this review, I have discussed only the natural products that can prevent the cancer, that are within the reach of the poor people and affordable by the mass people.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Pub Med, Research Gate and Google Scholar etc. have been searched for finding the suitable the literatures to find relevant research works. The keywords, “cancer”, “natural products”, “anticancer activities”, “Anticancer”, “Cancer treatment by herbs and phytoconstituents” etc. have been applied to find expected research articles and collect information on various aspects of the herbs and phytoconstituents to be used in this study. The structures of phytoconstituents have been drawn by using Chem Draw Ultra software.

Findings and Discussion: As mentioned earlier, we have searched for herbs and phytoconstituents which have anticancer activities. From our extensive searches, we have found the followings herbs and phytoconstituents which have anticancer properties. These are briefly presented below:

Green Tea: All kinds of tea leaves including green ones are obtained from Camellia sinensis. Other leaves are black and oolong and these are made by applying different procedures. Green tea is known to prevent the process of carcinogenesis. It contains polyphenols such as epigallocatechin-3- gallate Fig. 1A along with other chemical constituents. In a variety of studies, it has been found that green tea has anticarcinogenic activity and a remarkable safety profile ^{5, 6}. About one (1) gram of green tea as solids can be eaten in a day ⁷. Moreover, it shows synergistic property with erlotinib, a cancer growth blocker ^{8, 9}.

Curcumin: Curcumin is obtained from termeric. It’s scientific name is Curcuma longa which is a perennial plant of Zingiberaceae family. Termerics have been used from antiquity as a culinary spice, a textile coloring component, in marriage rituals and in medical science as an aromatic stimulant. Curcumin Fig. 1B is a natural phytoconstituent having antitumor activity and it is obtained as a colored compound from powdered turmeric. Many researchers revealed its potential to block the proliferation of neoplastic cells in in-vitro experiments and change carcinogenesis in rodent models ^{3, 4}. A recent review also indicated the anticancer property of Curcuma longa ¹⁰. Like epigallocatechin-3- gallate, curcumin has a wide safety margin. About eight (8) gram can be consumed in a day ¹¹. Termeric also shows synergy with antineoplastic medicines such as fluorouracil, alkaloids obtained from Vinca rosea plants and gemcitabine ^{12, 13, 14} and enhanced the chemo-preventive actionstogether with other dietary polyphenols, for example, genistein, green tea and embelin ^{15, 16}. These criterialed to clinical trials (phase I/II) to find out the safety, efficacy and pharmacokinetic properties of curcumin ^{17, 18}. But, a big challenge to curcumin’s use is its low oral bioavailability ¹⁹.

Red Wines and Grapefruit Skins: Red wine is a kind of drinking alcohol prepared from dark-colored grapes. The hue of this alcohol maybe intense violet to brick red and brown. The liquor from purple colored grape is greenish-white, the red color is due to anthocyan pigments that are present in the peel of the grape. The red wine production method includes extraction of color and flavor elements from the grape skin ²⁰. The scientific name of grapefruit is Citrus paradisi. It is a subtropical citrus plant and it is famous for large, sour to semi-sweet fruit. The inner flesh is divided from each other and differs in color from pale yellow to deep pink or red. Grapefruit has been originated in Barbados in the 18th century. It is an accidental hybrid between C. sinensis and C. maxima. It has also been called the forbidden fruit ^21-24.

Red wine and grapefruit skins contain resveratrol Fig. 1C which is a phytolexin. Phytolexin gives cardioprotective and chemopreventive activities. It can be eaten up to 5g/day and is safe ²⁵.

Red Tomatoes and Processed Tomato Products: The scientific name of tomato plant is Solanum lycopersicum omatoes are edible and liked by people of all strata ^26-27. Most of tomatoes become red when they are ripe. These red tomatoes and processed products of tomato are rich in lycopene (Fig. 1D) which is a natural antioxidant. A lot of investigators have found its capability to reduce the advancement of different types of cancer such as benign prostatic hyperplasia and prostate cancer ^28-29.

Green vegetables: Nature gives us a lot of edible vines that are green in color and enriched in nutrients and antioxidants which gives many health benefits. Few mentionable health benefits of green colored vegetables are - (a) Decreased risk of heart disease - green vegetables are enriched in vital electrolytes such as potassium, magnesium, and dietary nitrates. These electrolytes lowers blood pressure and keep the heart healthy, (b) Decreased risk of cancer - Green vegetables are full of antioxidants which helps to safeguard the cells from injury and lowers the risk of cancer, (c) Augmented GIT health - Green vegetables are excellent source of fiber that helps the digestive system to remain intact (d) Strong bones - Green vegetables contain calcium and vitamin K both of which are necessary to keep the bones healthy (e) Smooth skin and hair - Green vegetables are rich in vitamins (vitamins A, C, and E) and minerals which are needed for smooth skin and hair (f) Boosted energy levels - Green vegetables contains iron and B vitaminsanf they are needed to improve energy levels.

FIG. 1: CHEMICAL STRUCTURES OF PHYTOCONSTITUENTS FOUND IN DIFFERENT HERBS

Moreover, green vegetables also contain many other vital nutrients, for example - vitamins A, C, K and E, iron, calcium, and magnesium ³⁰. However, all kinds of green vegetables are rich in luteolin, a flavonoid (Fig. 1E). Animal experiments revealed their capability to trigger anticancer actions at many organs such as GIT, liver and colon ^31-33.

Soybeans: The scientific name of soybean is Glycine max. It is a species of legume that belongs to the Fabaceae or the bean family. Genistein (Fig. 1F), found naturally in soybeans having anticancer activity. The utilization of soybeans was exhibited to reduce the risk of endometrial, breast and prostate ^35-37. Few clinical experiments have revealed genistein’s effectiveness in treating prostate cancer.

Mustard Plant: Brassicaceae, a mustard family, includes about 338 genera and more than 3,700 species that are among the most commonly consumed group of plants all over the. The taxonomical classification of the two species, B. campestris (L.) and B. nigra (L.), are mostly used. A recent review work by Fareha et al., showed that mustard plants have anticancer activity and the phytoconstituent which is responsible for anticancer activity is Glucosinolates (Fig. 1G) ³⁸.

Carica papaya: It containsa lot of phytoconstituents. Among them, lycopene (Fig. 1D) showed anticancer activity. Hepatic cancer cell line Hep G2 is affected by lycopene ³⁹. The growth of cancer cell has also been prevented by ethanolic extract of C. papaya ⁴⁰. Ribosome-inactivating proteins present in C. papaya has shown anticancer activity against breast cancer cell line, T47D. Different cell lines such as stomach cancer cell line (ags), pancreatic cancer cell line (capan-1), colon cancer cell line (dld-1), ovarian cancer cell line (dov-13), lymphoma cell line (karpas), breast cancer cell line (mcf-7), neuroblastoma cell line (t98g), and uterine cancer cell line (hela) has been affected by aqueous extract of C. papaya. n-Hexane fraction of extract worked on leukemia HL-60 cells. Papain has been separated from this plant and it exhibitedcytotoxicity by disrupting the fibrin coat on the wall of cancer cell ^41-43.

Colocasia esculenta: Different parts of this plant contain a lot of phytoconstituents that have showed anticancer activities. The extract of this plant showed anticancer action against colon cancer ⁴⁴. Aqueous fraction of the extract displayed anticancer activity in a murine model of breast cancer ⁴⁵.

Ficus racemose: Ethanolic fruit extract of this plant showed anticancer activity against MCF7 human breast cancer cells ⁴⁶. The extract of this plant showed anticancer action against lung carcinoma cell line Calu6 ⁴⁷.

Lippia Alba: Leaf and flower extract of this plant showed cytotoxic activities ⁴⁸.

CONCLUSION: It can be inferred that the current perception and concepts of cancer pathology and pathways to curb it has opened a new window for prevention and prophylaxis of cancer by herbs and phytoconstituents. The use of herbs and phytoconstituents to prevent and treat neoplasm shows another path against the allopathic cytotoxic drugs. The goal of cancer therapy is to damage the neoplastic cells while keeping the healthy cells intact. However, clinical and toxicological studies, education and awareness of the mass people about the advantages of prevention of cancer and its destructive nature are vital for use of herbs and phytoconstituents for prevention and prophylactic effect against cancer.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: This author expresses his gratitude to the authors and co-authors of the articles cited here.

Source of funding: Author received no funding for the study.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST: There exists no conflict of interest.

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    How to cite this article:

    Amran MS: Anticancer herbs and phytoconstituents from nature: a short review. Int J Pharmacognosy 2024; 11(8): 421-25. doi link: http://dx.doi.org/10.13040/IJPSR.0975-8232.IJP.11(8).421-25.

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