Targeting digestive system cancers with isoliquiritigenin: a comprehensive review of antitumor mechanisms

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Pharmacology
• Natural Products Chemistry

Background:

• Digestive system cancers (gastric, colorectal, liver) are major causes of cancer mortality worldwide.
• Current treatments like chemotherapy and immunotherapy have limitations, necessitating novel therapeutic strategies.
• Isoliquiritigenin (ISL), a flavonoid from licorice, exhibits diverse pharmacological activities, including anticancer effects.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the anticancer mechanisms of Isoliquiritigenin (ISL) in digestive system malignancies.
• To highlight the multi-targeted actions of ISL against various tumorigenesis pathways.
• To assess the potential of ISL as a therapeutic agent for digestive cancers.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of preclinical studies on Isoliquiritigenin (ISL) and digestive cancers.
• Analysis of ISL's effects on key cellular processes: apoptosis, autophagy, ferroptosis, cell cycle, and immune modulation.
• Synthesis of current understanding of ISL's molecular targets and signaling pathways in tumorigenesis.

Main Results:

• Isoliquiritigenin (ISL) demonstrates potent anticancer activities against gastric, colorectal, and liver cancer models.
• ISL modulates critical pathways including apoptosis induction, autophagy regulation, ferroptosis promotion, cell cycle arrest, and immune response.
• ISL exhibits anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, contributing to its anticancer efficacy.

Conclusions:

• Isoliquiritigenin (ISL) presents a promising multi-targeted therapeutic strategy for digestive system tumors.
• Further preclinical and clinical investigations are warranted to explore ISL's full therapeutic potential.
• ISL offers a potential alternative or complementary treatment with reduced toxicity compared to conventional therapies.