Tumor-associated angiogenesis is a key target for anti-cancer therapy. The imbalance between pro-angiogenic and anti-angiogenic signals elicited by tumor cells or tumor microenvironment always results in activating “angiogenic switch”. Tumor angiogenesis functions in multi-aspects of tumor biology, including endothelial cell apoptosis, tumor metastasis, and cancer stem cell proliferation. Numerous studies have indicated the important roles of inexpensive and less toxic natural products in targeting tumor angiogenesis-associated cytokines and apoptotic signaling pathways. Our current knowledge of tumor angiogenesis is based mainly on experiments performed on cells and animals, so we summarized the well-established models for angiogenesis both in vitro and in vivo. In this review, we classified and summarized the anti-angiogenic natural agents (Polyphenols, Polysaccharides, Alkaloids, Terpenoids, Saponins) in targeting various tumor types according to their chemical structures at present, and discussed the mechanistic principles of these natural products on regulating angiogenesis-associated cytokines and apoptotic signaling pathways. This review is to help understanding the recent progress of natural product research for drug development on anti-tumor angiogenesis.
Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are RNAs that do not encode proteins, but perform biological functions in various physiological and pathological processes, including cancer formation, inflammation, and neurological diseases. Tumor blood vessels are a key target for cancer management. A number of factors regulate the angiogenesis of malignant tumors. NcRNAs participate in the regulation of tumor angiogenesis. Abnormal expression of ncRNAs act as tumor suppressors or oncogenes to affect the development of tumors. In this review we summarized the biological functions of ncRNAs, and discussed its regulatory mechanisms in tumor angiogenesis. This article will provide new insights for the research of ncRNAs in tumor angiogenesis.
1 December 2021 in Free Radical Biology and Medicine
Cervical cancer is one of the most common gynecological malignancies. At present, cytotoxic chemotherapeutic drugs and immunotherapy are the main therapeutic options for recurrent and metastatic cervical cancer. Tisotumab vedotin is an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) and a potential novel treatment for cervical carcinoma. Tisotumab vedotin targets tissue factor (TF), which is highly expressed on the surface of cervical cancer cells, by delivering the cytotoxic agent monomethyl auristatin E (MMAE) directly into tumor cells. Currently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved tisotumab vedotin for the treatment of adult female patients with recurrent or metastatic cervical cancer with disease progression on or after chemotherapy. This article reviews the results of preclinical studies and clinical trials of tisotumab vedotin. The findings suggest that tisotumab vedotin can induce clinically significant and long-lasting remission with controllable and tolerable safety in the difficult-to-treat group of cervical cancer patients.