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. 2022 Aug;36(8):3032-3079.
doi: 10.1002/ptr.7498. Epub 2022 May 23.

Effects of medicinal plants and natural compounds in models of prostate cancer related to sex steroids: A systematic review

Rafael Abe da Rocha Miranda  1 , Marcela Martins de Paula Oliveira  1 , Maria Isadora Gabriel Sampaio  1 , João Victor Dutra Gomes  2 , Damaris Silveira  2 , Eliete Neves Silva Guerra  3 , Adriana Lofrano-Porto  1   4 , Cinthia Gabriel Meireles  1 , Luiz Alberto Simeoni  1
Affiliations

Effects of medicinal plants and natural compounds in models of prostate cancer related to sex steroids: A systematic review

Rafael Abe da Rocha Miranda et al. Phytother Res. 2022 Aug.

Abstract

Prostate cancer remains a health problem for men. Targeting androgen (AR) and estrogen (ER) receptors improves the outcomes of the disease, and many medicinal plants exert their effects by modulating these pathways. Therefore, a systematic review was conducted to identify medicinal plants and their natural compounds that may modulate the AR and/or ER pathways in cell and animal models. A search was conducted across EMBASE, LILACS, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science, with grey literature from Google SCHOLAR and ProQuest. Two authors independently selected eligible studies based on their titles and abstracts, and a third author resolved conflicts. Then, data from the full text of eligible studies were extracted and synthesized. In total, 75 studies were included. Results showed the effects of several different medicinal plants and natural compounds in reduction of AR and/or ER transcription and translation and AR secondary effects: cell growth reduction, induction of apoptosis, and cell cycle arrest. In animal models, tumor size reduction, increase in apoptosis, and downregulation of AR expression in tumors were also observed. No single phytochemical group concentrating molecules with anti-AR and/or ER activity was identified. Nevertheless, several phytochemical compounds showed potential for future clinical studies in the management of the disease.

Keywords: androgen receptor; estrogen receptor; medicinal plants; prostate cancer; systematic review.

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References

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