Ge Hongzhang, Xu Chao, Chen Haitao, Liu Ling, Zhang Lei, Wu Changhong, Lu Yi, Yao Qinghua
Department of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, The Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Zhejiang Cancer Hospital), Institute of Basic Medicine and Cancer (IBMC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, China.
Key Laboratory of Integration of Chinese and Western Medicine Oncology, Zhejiang Cancer Hospital, Hangzhou, China.
Front Pharmacol. 2022 Mar 4;13:842295. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2022.842295. eCollection 2022.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common type of cancer worldwide. Distant metastasis is the major cause of cancer-related mortality in patients with CRC. Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a critical process triggered during tumor metastasis, which is also the main impetus and the essential access within this duration. Therefore, targeting EMT-related molecular pathways has been considered a novel strategy to explore effective therapeutic agents against metastatic CRC. Traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) with unique properties multi-target and multi-link that exert their therapeutic efficacies holistically, which could inhibit the invasion and metastasis ability of CRC cells via inhibiting the EMT process by down-regulating transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β)/Smads, PI3K/Akt, NF-κB, Wnt/β-catenin, and Notch signaling pathways. The objective of this review is to summarize and assess the anti-metastatic effect of TCM-originated bioactive compounds and Chinese medicine formulas by mediating EMT-associated signaling pathways in CRC therapy, providing a foundation for further research on the exact mechanisms of action through which TCMs affect EMT transform in CRC.
结直肠癌（CRC）是全球第三大常见癌症类型。远处转移是CRC患者癌症相关死亡的主要原因。上皮-间质转化（EMT）是肿瘤转移过程中触发的关键过程，也是这一过程中的主要推动力和必要途径。因此，靶向EMT相关分子途径被认为是探索针对转移性CRC有效治疗药物的新策略。具有独特性质的中药多靶点、多环节，整体发挥治疗作用，可通过下调转化生长因子-β（TGF-β）/Smads、PI3K/Akt、NF-κB、Wnt/β-连环蛋白和Notch信号通路抑制EMT过程，从而抑制CRC细胞的侵袭和转移能力。本综述的目的是总结和评估中药来源的生物活性化合物和中药方剂通过介导EMT相关信号通路在CRC治疗中的抗转移作用，为进一步研究中药影响CRC中EMT转化的确切作用机制提供基础。
