Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 4, 2026
11:13
Mass Spectrometry-Guided Genome Mining as a Tool to Uncover Novel Natural Products
Published on: March 12, 2020
11.6K
Natural Products as a Source for Antifibrosis Therapy
Dan-Qian Chen1, Ya-Long Feng1, Gang Cao2
1School of Life Science, Northwest University, No. 229 Taibai North Road, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710069, China.
Trends in Pharmacological Sciences
|October 1, 2018
Summary
Natural products show promise in treating fibrosis by targeting key molecular mechanisms. These compounds can inhibit inflammation and tissue scarring, offering new strategies for antifibrotic drug discovery.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Pharmacology
- Pathology
Background:
- Fibrosis is a common outcome in chronic diseases, yet effective targeted treatments remain limited.
- Natural products are emerging as viable therapeutic options for fibrotic conditions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore novel profibrotic mechanisms and identify potential therapeutic targets for natural product-based antifibrotic drug discovery.
- To review how natural products can modulate key fibrotic pathways.
Main Methods:
- Review of cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying fibrosis.
- Identification of profibrotic mediators and their corresponding therapeutic targets.
- Analysis of natural products' potential to inhibit fibrotic processes.
Main Results:
- Identified key therapeutic targets including Interleukin, ephrin-B2, Gas6/TAM, Wnt/β-catenin, hedgehog pathway, PPARγ, lysophosphatidic acid, and CTGF.
- Natural products can inhibit inflammation, myofibroblast activation, epithelial-mesenchymal transition, and extracellular matrix accumulation.
- Natural products may offer multi-organ antifibrotic effects.
Conclusions:
- Natural products represent a promising source for developing novel antifibrotic therapies.
- Targeting specific molecular pathways with natural products can effectively alleviate fibrosis.
- The potential for multi-organ antifibrotic action opens new avenues for drug development.
Related Concept Videos
01:32What is Natural Selection?
129.5K
Natural selection is an evolutionary process in which individuals with survival-promoting traits reproduce at higher rates. These favorable traits become more common within a population or species. Naturally selected traits initially arise via random genetic mutations. In order for selection to occur, there must be variation within a population, the trait controlling the variation must be heritable, and there must be an evolutionary advantage for variation in the trait.
129.5K
01:10Nature and Nurture
22.4K
Many human characteristics, like height, are shaped by both nature—in other words, by our genes—and by nurture, or our environment. For example, chronic stress during childhood inhibits the production of growth hormones and consequently reduces bone growth and height. Scientists estimate that 70-90% of variation in height is due to genetic differences among individuals, and 10-30% of variation in height is due to differences in the environments that individuals experience,...
22.4K
00:59Gene Therapy
27.6K
Gene therapy is a technique where a gene is inserted into a person’s cells to prevent or treat a serious disease. The added gene may be a healthy version of the gene that is mutated in the patient, or it could be a different gene that inactivates or compensates for the patient’s disease-causing gene. For example, in patients with severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) due to a mutation in the gene for the enzyme adenosine deaminase, a functioning version of the gene can be...
27.6K
02:12The Wave Nature of Light
61.4K
The nature of light has been a subject of inquiry since antiquity. In the seventeenth century, Isaac Newton performed experiments with lenses and prisms and was able to demonstrate that white light consists of the individual colors of the rainbow combined together. Newton explained his optics findings in terms of a "corpuscular" view of light, in which light was composed of streams of extremely tiny particles traveling at high speeds according to Newton's laws of motion.
61.4K
02:30Chirality in Nature
17.2K
Chirality is the most intriguing yet essential facet of nature, governing life’s biochemical processes and precision. It can be observed from a snail shell pattern in a macroscopic world to an amino acid, the minutest building block of life. Most of the snails around the world have right-coiled shells because of the intrinsic chirality in their genes. All the amino acids present in the human body exist in an enantiomerically pure state, except for glycine - the sole achiral amino acid.
17.2K
01:18Sinusoidal Sources
1.2K
Direct current (DC) refers to an electric current that flows in a single direction, maintaining a constant polarity. This is in contrast to alternating current (AC), which periodically changes its direction and magnitude. AC forms the backbone of modern electricity transmission and distribution systems due to its efficient long-distance transmission capabilities.
In homes, the power supplies use sinusoidal sources to provide electricity. These sources generate a voltage that varies sinusoidally...
In homes, the power supplies use sinusoidal sources to provide electricity. These sources generate a voltage that varies sinusoidally...
1.2K