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Review
. 2012 Dec;12(10):1159-84.
doi: 10.2174/187152012803833035.

Cancer prevention with promising natural products: mechanisms of action and molecular targets

Poyil Pratheeshkumar  1 , Chakkenchath Sreekala, Zhuo Zhang, Amit Budhraja, Songze Ding, Young-Ok Son, Xin Wang, Andrew Hitron, Kim Hyun-Jung, Lei Wang, Jeong-Chae Lee, Xianglin Shi
Affiliations
Review

Cancer prevention with promising natural products: mechanisms of action and molecular targets

Poyil Pratheeshkumar et al. Anticancer Agents Med Chem. 2012 Dec.

Abstract

Cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide. There is greater need for more effective and less toxic therapeutic and preventive strategies. Natural products are becoming an important research area for novel and bioactive molecules for drug discovery. Phytochemicals and dietary compounds have been used for the treatment of cancer throughout history due to their safety, low toxicity, and general availability. Many active phytochemicals are in human clinical trials. Studies have indicated that daily consumption of dietary phytochemicals have cancer protective effects against carcinogens. They can inhibit, delay, or reverse carcinogenesis by inducing detoxifying and antioxidant enzymes systems, regulating inflammatory and proliferative signaling pathways, and inducing cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. Epidemiological studies have also revealed that high dietary intakes of fruits and vegetables reduce the risk of cancer. This review discusses potential natural cancer preventive compounds, their molecular targets, and their mechanisms of actions.

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Conflict of interest statement

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

The author(s) confirm that this article content has no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. (1)
Fig. (1)
Multi-step process in carcinogenesis.
Fig. (2)
Fig. (2)
Chemical structures and sources of natural chemopreventive agents.
Fig. (3)
Fig. (3)
Targets of natural chemopreventive agents.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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