Murtazina Alima, Jimenez-Martinez Yaiza, Ruiz Alcala Gloria, Marchal Juan Antonio, Tarabayeva Anel, Bitanova Elmira, Rakhimbayev Izbasar, McDougall Gordon J, Bishimbayeva Nazira, Boulaiz Houria
Department of General Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Asfendyarov Kazakh National Medical University, Almaty 050012, Kazakhstan.
Biopathology and Regenerative Medicine Institute (IBIMER), Centre for Biomedical Research, University of Granada, 18016 Granada, Spain.
Polymers (Basel). 2025 Apr 12;17(8):1048. doi: 10.3390/polym17081048.
Natural polysaccharides (PSs) have shown inhibitory effects on differentiated cancer cells (DCCs), but their activity against cancer stem cells (CSCs) remains poorly understood. Here, we report that PSs from wheat cell cultures (WCCPSs) inhibit the proliferation of both DCCs and CSCs derived from HCT-116 colorectal cancer cells. Among them, NA and DC fractions showed the strongest anti-CSC activity. NA, rich in xylose, was effective at lower concentrations, while DC, enriched in xylose and galacturonic acid (GalUA), exhibited higher potency, with a lower IC and preferential activity against CSCs at higher doses. WCCPSs reduced β-catenin levels, and some fractions also downregulated Ep-CAM, CD44, and c-Myc. Notably, DC increased caspase-3 without inducing cytochrome C and caspase-8 overexpression, suggesting a mechanism promoting CSC differentiation rather than apoptosis. Correlation analysis linked xylose content to reduced c-Myc expression, and GalUA levels to increased caspase-3. These results suggest that WCCPS bioactivity may be related to their monosaccharide composition. Overall, our findings support the potential of wheat-derived PSs as CSC-targeting agents that suppress self-renewal and promote differentiation, offering a promising approach to reduce tumor aggressiveness and recurrence.
天然多糖(PSs)已显示出对分化癌细胞(DCCs)的抑制作用,但其对癌症干细胞(CSCs)的活性仍知之甚少。在此,我们报告来自小麦细胞培养物的多糖(WCCPSs)可抑制源自HCT - 116结肠癌细胞的DCCs和CSCs的增殖。其中,NA和DC组分显示出最强的抗CSC活性。富含木糖的NA在较低浓度下有效,而富含木糖和半乳糖醛酸(GalUA)的DC表现出更高的效力,具有较低的半数抑制浓度(IC),并且在较高剂量下对CSCs具有优先活性。WCCPSs降低了β-连环蛋白水平,并且一些组分还下调了上皮细胞黏附分子(Ep - CAM)、CD44和c - Myc。值得注意的是,DC增加了半胱天冬酶 - 3的水平,而没有诱导细胞色素C和半胱天冬酶 - 8的过表达,这表明其作用机制是促进CSC分化而非凋亡。相关性分析将木糖含量与c - Myc表达的降低以及GalUA水平与半胱天冬酶 - 3的增加联系起来。这些结果表明WCCPS的生物活性可能与其单糖组成有关。总体而言,我们的研究结果支持源自小麦的PSs作为靶向CSCs的药物的潜力,其可抑制自我更新并促进分化,为降低肿瘤侵袭性和复发提供了一种有前景的方法。