Anticancer Mechanisms of Natural Compounds in Cell Models

Natural compounds from plants, microorganisms and marine sources offer diverse mechanisms to inhibit tumour cell proliferation in cell-based models. Key strategies include induction of apoptosis through mitochondrial pathways, modulation of cell-cycle regulators to elicit G0/G1 or G2/M arrest, generation of reactive oxygen species to trigger oxidative stress and inhibition of pro-survival signalling pathways such as PI3K/AKT/mTOR and MAPK. Many phenolic compounds and terpenoids also interfere with metastatic behaviours by down-regulating matrix metalloproteinases and blocking angiogenesis via vascular endothelial growth factor suppression. Advances in formulation, including nano-encapsulation and polymeric carriers, have improved cellular uptake and selective cytotoxicity against malignant cells while sparing normal counterparts. Representative agents include monoterpenes such as thymol, phenolic polyphenols like curcumin and complex alkaloids, all demonstrating dose-dependent effects across multiple cell lines. Such studies provide a platform for combinatorial approaches pairing natural compounds with conventional chemotherapy, enhancing chemosensitivity and promoting cell death via complementary mechanisms.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Cytotoxicity screening of Thymus vulgaris L. essential oil in tumour cell lines employed a brine shrimp lethality test alongside MTT assays in human breast adenocarcinoma, lung carcinoma and acute lymphoblastic leukaemia cells. Chemically characterised oil—rich in thymol, p-cymene, γ-terpinene and carvacrol—displayed dose-dependent antiproliferative activity, with IC50 values ranging from approximately 50 to 230 µg/mL and varied sensitivity across cell types. These findings validated rapid in vivo surrogates and highlighted key constituents for further mechanistic dissection, emphasising the relevance of essential oils in anticancer screening pipelines.

Anticancer Mechanisms of Natural Compounds in Cell Models publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in anticancer mechanisms of natural compounds in cell models across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Apoptosis: programmed cell death involving caspase activation and DNA fragmentation.

Cell cycle arrest: cessation of progression through a specific phase of cell division.

Reactive oxygen species: chemically reactive molecules containing oxygen that induce oxidative stress.

Monoterpene: a class of plant-derived terpenoids composed of two isoprene units with diverse bioactivities.

In vitro: experimental studies conducted in a controlled environment outside living organisms.

References

1. Natural Products as Anticancer Agents: Current Status and Future Perspectives. Molecules (2022).
2. Therapeutic Potential of Certain Terpenoids as Anticancer Agents: A Scoping Review. Cancers (2022).
3. A Narrative Review of the Antitumor Activity of Monoterpenes from Essential Oils: An Update. BioMed Research International (2022).
4. Cytotoxicity screening of Thymus vulgaris L. essential oil in brine shrimp nauplii and cancer cell lines. Scientific Reports (2021).