Marine Natural Products with Activities against Prostate Cancer: Recent Discoveries

Abstract

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men, with over 52,000 new cases diagnosed every year. Diagnostics and early treatment are potentially hindered by variations in screening protocols, still largely reliant on serum levels of acid phosphatase and prostate-specific antigen, with tumour diagnosis and grading relying on histopathological examination. Current treatment interventions vary in terms of efficacy, cost and severity of side effects, and relapse can be aggressive and resistant to the current standard of care. For these reasons, the scientific community is looking for new chemotherapeutic agents. This review reports compounds and extracts derived from marine organisms as a potential source of new drugs against prostate cancer. Whilst there are several marine-derived compounds against other cancers, such as multiple myeloma, leukemia, breast and lung cancer, already available in the market, the presently collated findings show how the marine environment can be considered to hold potential as a new drug source for prostate cancer, as well. This review presents information on compounds presently in clinical trials, as well as new compounds/extracts that may enter trials in the future. We summarise information regarding mechanisms of action and active concentrations.

Neuroprotective effect of acetoxypachydiol against oxidative stress through activation of the Keap1-Nrf2/HO-1 pathway

“…Consequently, the development of new drugs from marine resources has become a focal point of scientific research. Currently, there are approximately 17 marine-derived drugs approved by the FDA for international marketing [ 15 ], primarily used in anti-tumor and anti-viral treatments [ 16 , 17 ]. However, research on the neuroprotective properties of marine natural products is scarce.…”

Assessing the Potential of Small Peptides for Altering Expression Levels of the Iron-Regulatory Genes FTH1 and TFRC and Enhancing Androgen Receptor Inhibitor Activity in In Vitro Prostate Cancer Models

“…It is not uncommon for marine protein hydrolysates to contain anticancer peptides encrypted within their parent proteins [40]. Several marine-derived compounds have been reported to exhibit anticancer properties in PCa models [41,42]. While there is a potentially wide range of mechanisms through which their anticancer effects may be mediated, in pre-clinical studies, these peptides have been shown to sensitize cancer cells to anticancer agents [43,44].…”