Department of Biology, Institute of Biosciences, Humanities and Exact Science (IBILCE), São Paulo State University (UNESP), São José do Rio Preto 15054-000, Brazil.
Department of Molecular Biology, School of Medicine of São José do Rio Preto (FAMERP), São José do Rio Preto 15090-000, Brazil.
Int J Mol Sci. 2024 May 25;25(11):5762. doi: 10.3390/ijms25115762.
Piperine, an active plant alkaloid from black pepper ), has several pharmacological effects, namely antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects, which involve inhibiting molecular events associated with various stages of cancer development. The aim of this study was to investigate the molecular mechanisms of action of piperine in relation to its potential anticancer effect on head and neck cancer cells. Parameters related to neoplastic potential and cytokine, protein and gene expression were investigated in head and neck cancer cell lines (HEp-2 and SCC-25) treated with piperine. The results of the tests indicated that piperine modified morphology and inhibited viability and the formation of cell colonies. Piperine promoted genotoxicity by triggering apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in the G2/M and S phases. A decrease in cell migration was also observed, and there was decreased expression of MMP2/9 genes. Piperine also reduced the expression of inflammatory molecules (PTGS2 and PTGER4), regulated the secretion of cytokines (IFN- and IL-8) and modulated the expression of ERK and p38. These results suggest that piperine exerts anticancer effects on tumor cells by regulating signaling pathways associated with head and neck cancer.
胡椒碱是黑胡椒中的一种活性植物生物碱，具有多种药理作用，如抗氧化、抗炎和免疫调节作用，其涉及抑制与癌症发展各个阶段相关的分子事件。本研究旨在探讨胡椒碱在头颈部癌细胞中发挥潜在抗癌作用的分子机制。用胡椒碱处理头颈部癌细胞系（HEp-2 和 SCC-25）后，研究了与肿瘤潜能和细胞因子、蛋白及基因表达相关的参数。实验结果表明，胡椒碱可改变细胞形态，抑制细胞活力和集落形成。胡椒碱通过触发细胞凋亡和细胞周期阻滞在 G2/M 和 S 期，导致遗传毒性。还观察到细胞迁移减少，MMP2/9 基因表达降低。胡椒碱还降低了炎症分子（PTGS2 和 PTGER4）的表达，调节细胞因子（IFN-和 IL-8）的分泌，并调节 ERK 和 p38 的表达。这些结果表明，胡椒碱通过调节与头颈部癌症相关的信号通路对头颈部肿瘤细胞发挥抗癌作用。
