Strawberry tree honey as a new potential functional food. Part 1: Strawberry tree honey reduces colon cancer cell proliferation and colony formation ability, inhibits cell cycle and promotes apoptosis by regulating EGFR and MAPKs signaling pathways

Afrin, S.; Giampieri, F.; Cianciosi, D.; Pistollato, F.; Ansary, J.; Pacetti, M.; Amici, A.; Reboredo-Rodriguez, P.; Simal-Gandara, J.; Quiles, J. L.; Forbes-Hernandez, T. Y.; Battino, M.

doi:10.1016/j.jff.2019.04.035

The aim of this work was to assess the phytochemical composition and anticancer effects of Strawberry-tree honey (STH) on cellular proliferation, cell cycle and apoptosis in human colon adenocarcinoma (HCT-116) and metastatic (LoVo) cancer cells. Kaempferol and gallic acid were the major phenolic compounds. STH showed higher cytotoxic and anti-colonogenic effects in a time- and dose-dependent manner; it arrested cell cycle in S and G2/M and regulated cell cycle genes, such as cyclin D1, cyclin E, CDK2, CDK4, p21Cip, p27Kip and p-RB. STH treatment promoted apoptosis by modulating key genes (p53, caspase-3, c-PARP) as well as intrinsic (Bax/Bcl2, Cyto C and caspase-9) and extrinsic (Fas L and caspase-8) apoptotic factors. STH also caused endoplasmic reticulum stress by increasing ATF-6 and XBP-1 expressions, suppressed EGFR, HER2 and downstream markers (p-Akt and p-mTOR) and elevated p-p38MAPK and p-ERK1/2. In conclusion, STH have shown a chemo-preventive action on different colon cancer cell models.

Strawberry tree honey as a new potential functional food. Part 1: Strawberry tree honey reduces colon cancer cell proliferation and colony formation ability, inhibits cell cycle and promotes apoptosis by regulating EGFR and MAPKs signaling pathways / Afrin, S.; Giampieri, F.; Cianciosi, D.; Pistollato, F.; Ansary, J.; Pacetti, M.; Amici, A.; Reboredo-Rodriguez, P.; Simal-Gandara, J.; Quiles, J. L.; Forbes-Hernandez, T. Y.; Battino, M.. - In: JOURNAL OF FUNCTIONAL FOODS. - ISSN 1756-4646. - ELETTRONICO. - 57:(2019), pp. 439-452. [10.1016/j.jff.2019.04.035]