The use of cannabinoids as anticancer agents

Velasco, Guillermo; Hernández-Tiedra, Sonia; Dávila, David; Lorente, Mar

doi:10.1016/j.pnpbp.2015.05.010

Cited by 140 publications

(114 citation statements)

References 102 publications

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“…Based on this, CNR2 might be pointed as an important gene in the general breast cancer transcriptional architecture. Cannabinoid receptors have been previously proposed as pharmacological targets for cancer (Chakravarti et al, 2014; Velasco et al, 2016), including breast cancer (Qamri et al, 2009; Morales et al, 2015). Our transcriptional network findings suggest that, if therapeutic benefits to this type of treatment are found, they may be of use to all types of breast cancer.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transcriptional Network Architecture of Breast Cancer Molecular Subtypes

et al. 2016

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Breast cancer heterogeneity is evident at the clinical, histological and molecular level. High throughput technologies allowed the identification of intrinsic subtypes that capture transcriptional differences among tumors. A remaining question is whether said differences are associated to a particular transcriptional program which involves different connections between the same molecules. In other words, whether particular transcriptional network architectures can be linked to specific phenotypes. In this work we infer, construct and analyze transcriptional networks from whole-genome gene expression microarrays, by using an information theory approach. We use 493 samples of primary breast cancer tissue classified in four molecular subtypes: Luminal A, Luminal B, Basal and HER2-enriched. For comparison, a network for non-tumoral mammary tissue (61 samples) is also inferred and analyzed. Transcriptional networks present particular architectures in each breast cancer subtype as well as in the non-tumor breast tissue. We find substantial differences between the non-tumor network and those networks inferred from cancer samples, in both structure and gene composition. More importantly, we find specific network architectural features associated to each breast cancer subtype. Based on breast cancer networks' centrality, we identify genes previously associated to the disease, either, generally (i.e., CNR2) or to a particular subtype (such as LCK). Similarly, we identify LUZP4, a gene barely explored in breast cancer, playing a role in transcriptional networks with subtype-specific relevance. With this approach we observe architectural differences between cancer and non-cancer at network level, as well as differences between cancer subtype networks which might be associated with breast cancer heterogeneity. The centrality measures of these networks allow us to identify genes with potential biomedical implications to breast cancer.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transcriptional Network Architecture of Breast Cancer Molecular Subtypes

et al. 2016

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“…Antitumorigenic mechanisms of cannabinoids are showing their ability to interfere with tumor neovascularization, cancer cell migration, adhesion, invasion, and metastasis [49]. The mechanism of cannabinoids' anticancer action depends on the ability of their agents to stimulate autophagy-mediated apoptotic cancer cell death; thus, cannabinoid action helps in cancer cell death, impairs tumor angiogenesis, and blocks invasion and metastasis [50] and cannabinoids are currently also being tested as anticancer agents in phase I/II clinical studies [51]. …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Appraisals of Bangladeshi Medicinal Plants Used by Folk Medicine Practitioners in the Prevention and Management of Malignant Neoplastic Diseases

Azam¹,

Rahman²,

Biswas

et al. 2016

International Scholarly Research Notices

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Cancer is a group of diseases which is categorized to differentiate into diverse cell types and move around in the body to sites of organogenesis that is key to the process of tumor genesis. All types of cancer fall into the group of malignant neoplastic diseases. In Bangladesh, cancer is now one of the foremost killer diseases and its personal, social, and economic bearing are huge. Plant-derived natural compounds (vincristine, vinblastine, etoposide, paclitaxel, camptothecin, topotecan, and irinotecan) are useful for the treatment of cancer. Since there is no extensive ethnobotanical research study in Bangladesh regarding the traditional uses of medicinal plants against neoplasms, therefore, a randomized ethnopharmacological surveys were carried out in 3 districts of Bangladesh to learn more about the usage of anticancer medicinal plants and their chemical constituents having antineoplastic activity. Comprehensive interviews were conducted to the folk medicine practitioners and medicinal plants as pointed out by them were photographed, collected, deposited, and identified at the Bangladesh National Herbarium. The various plant parts have been used by the healers which included whole plant, leaves, fruits, barks, roots, and seeds. This study evaluated considerable potential for discovery of novel compounds with less side effects in the management and prevention of malignancy in cancer.

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“…Whilst there is evidence showing that some cannabinoids induce anti-proliferative effect on tumour cells in vitro (Hart et al, 2004;White et al, 1976;Velasco et al, 2015), there is evidence to suggest that the effects may depend upon the disease context with differential effects seen in different tumour types. The subsequent sections focus specifically on the evidence of cannabinoid induced anti-tumour effects in specific cancer 11 types with the aim of exploring the mechanism of action of non-psychoactive components of cannabinoids in a disease specific context.…”

Section: Anti-tumour Effects Of Cannabinoidsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cannabinoid pharmacology in cancer research: A new hope for cancer patients?

Javid

Phillips

Afshinjavid

et al. 2016

European Journal of Pharmacology

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Cannabinoids have been used for many centuries to ease pain and in the past decade, the endocannabinoid system has been implicated in a number of pathophysiological conditions, such as mood and anxiety disorders, movement disorders such as Parkinson's and Huntington's disease, neuropathic pain, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury, atherosclerosis, myocardial infarction, stroke, hypertension, glaucoma, obesity, and osteoporosis. Several studies have demonstrated that cannabinoids also have anti-cancer activity and as cannabinoids are usually well tolerated and do not produce the typical toxic effects of conventional chemotherapies, there is considerable merit in the development of cannabinoids as potential anticancer therapies. Whilst the presence of psychoactive effects of cannabinoids could prevent any progress in this field, recent studies have shown the value of the non-psychoactive components of cannabinoids in activating apoptotic pathways, inducing anti-proliferative and anti-angiogenic effects. The aforementioned effects are suggested to be through pathways such as ERK, Akt, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways, phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) pathways and hypoxia inducible factor 1 (HIF1), all of which are important contributors to the hallmarks of cancer. Many important questions still remain unanswered or are poorly addressed thus necessitating further research at basic pre-clinical and clinical levels. In this review, we address these issues with a view to identifying the key challenges that future research needs to address.

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The use of cannabinoids as anticancer agents

Cited by 140 publications

References 102 publications

Transcriptional Network Architecture of Breast Cancer Molecular Subtypes

Transcriptional Network Architecture of Breast Cancer Molecular Subtypes

Appraisals of Bangladeshi Medicinal Plants Used by Folk Medicine Practitioners in the Prevention and Management of Malignant Neoplastic Diseases

Cannabinoid pharmacology in cancer research: A new hope for cancer patients?

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