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• Yadav, V
• Prasad, S
• Sung, B
• Kannappan, R
• Aggarwal, B
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• Yadav, V
• Prasad, S
• Sung, B
• Kannappan, R
• Aggarwal, B
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• Yadav, V
• Prasad, S
• Sung, B
• Kannappan, R
• Aggarwal, B

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Toxins 2010, 2(10), 2428-2466; doi:10.3390/toxins2102428

Review

Targeting Inflammatory Pathways by Triterpenoids for Prevention and Treatment of Cancer

Vivek R. Yadav, Sahdeo Prasad, Bokyung Sung, Ramaswamy Kannappan and Bharat B. Aggarwal*

Cytokine Research Laboratory, Department of Experimental Therapeutics, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston 77030, TX, USA

* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Received: 30 August 2010; in revised form: 23 September 2010 / Accepted: 15 October 2010 / Published: 22 October 2010

Download PDF Full-Text [1349 KB, uploaded 22 October 2010 13:39 CEST]

Abstract: Traditional medicine and diet has served mankind through the ages for prevention and treatment of most chronic diseases. Mounting evidence suggests that chronic inflammation mediates most chronic diseases, including cancer. More than other transcription factors, nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB) and STAT3 have emerged as major regulators of inflammation, cellular transformation, and tumor cell survival, proliferation, invasion, angiogenesis, and metastasis. Thus, agents that can inhibit NF-κB and STAT3 activation pathways have the potential to both prevent and treat cancer. In this review, we examine the potential of one group of compounds called triterpenes, derived from traditional medicine and diet for their ability to suppress inflammatory pathways linked to tumorigenesis. These triterpenes include avicins, betulinic acid, boswellic acid, celastrol, diosgenin, madecassic acid, maslinic acid, momordin, saikosaponins, platycodon, pristimerin, ursolic acid, and withanolide. This review thus supports the famous adage of Hippocrates, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food”.

Keywords: triterpenoids; nuclear factor-κB; inflammation; tumor cell proliferation; invasion; angiogenesis; apoptosis

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