New bioactive compounds identified with possible potential to help in the fight against breast cancer

   VALENCIA, 4 Oct. (EUROPA PRESS) -

A multidisciplinary research team from the Institute of Chemical Technology (ITQ) - a joint center of the Higher Council for Scientific Research (CSIC) and the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV) - and the Louisiana State University (LSU) in the United States has demonstrated for the first time in breast cancer models the antitumor properties of structural analogues of different natural metabolites.

These findings, published in the journal 'Cancers', suggest the potential of these bioactive compounds for the development of new therapeutic agents against breast cancer.

The CSIC reminds us that breast cancer is one of the most common and deadly diseases in women around the world. Despite advances in diagnosis and treatment, it remains a difficult disease to treat and with a high mortality rate. For this reason, the search for new compounds and therapies is essential to improve the survival and quality of life of patients.

The research work focuses on tanshinone IIA, isolated from the Salvia miltiorrhiza plant, and carnosol, found in rosemary (Salvia Rosmarinus). "Both compounds have shown anticancer activities in laboratory and in vivo tests. However, there are hardly any studies on the pharmacological properties of the structural analogues of these molecules," says Miguel Ángel González Cardenete, CSIC researcher at the ITQ and in a statement. main author of the work.

In their study, ITQ researchers synthesized analogues of tanshinone and carnosol, through a sustainable process from materials from pine resin, while Fátima Rivas's (LSU) team evaluated their antitumor activity in breast cancer cell lines. breast, including triple-negative breast cancer models (without estrogen and progesterone hormone receptors or human epidermal growth factor receptor 2, HER2).

"This subtype of breast cancer is very aggressive, with rapid development and low survival rates, and since it lacks the three most common types of receptors, it does not respond to anti-hormonal or anti-HER2 therapy, which is why there are few chemotherapy treatments. effective and very expensive," says Fátima Rivas, a professor at LSU.

The results showed that several of the analogues inhibited the proliferation of breast cancer cells and increased programmed cell death at very small concentrations and with moderate selectivity indices with respect to non-tumor cells.

These findings suggest the potential of tanshinone and carnosol analogues for the development of new therapeutic agents against breast cancer.

"However, further research is needed to fully understand the underlying mechanisms of action and validate the efficacy of these compounds in animal models and clinical trials before their possible application in the treatment of breast cancer," concludes Miguel Ángel González Cardenete.