Search

Four alkaloids, voacangine (1), isovoacangine (2), coronaridine (3), and coronaridine hydroxyindolenine (4), were isolated from the MeOH extract of Tabernaemontana divaricata aerial parts by activity-guided fractionation for Wnt signal inhibitory activity. Compounds 1-4 exhibited TCF/β-catenin inhibitory activities with IC50 values of 11.5, 6.0, 5.8, and 7.3 μM, respectively. Of these, coronaridine (3) decreased β-catenin levels in SW480 colon cancer cells, while this decrease in β-catenin was not suppressed by a co-treatment with 3 and MG132, a proteasome inhibitor. These results suggested that the decrease observed in β-catenin levels by coronaridine (3) did not depend on a proteasomal degradation process. On the other hand, the treatment of SW480 cells with coronaridine (3) caused a decrease in β-catenin mRNA levels. Thus, coronaridine (3) may inhibit the Wnt signaling pathway by decreasing the mRNA expression of β-catenin., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway performs an important role in embryonic development and in cellular proliferation and differentiation. However, aberrant activation of the Hh signaling pathway is associated with tumorigenesis. Hh signal inhibition was evaluated using a cell-based assay system that targets GLI1-mediated transcription. Activity-guided isolation of the Withania somnifera MeOH extract led to the isolation of six compounds: withaferin A (1) and its derivatives (2-6). Compounds 1 and 2 showed strong inhibition of Hh/GLI1-mediated transcriptional activity with IC50 values of 0.5 and 0.6 μM, respectively. Compounds 1, 2, 3, and 6 were cytotoxic toward human pancreatic (PANC-1), prostate (DU145) and breast (MCF7) cancer cells. Furthermore, 1 also inhibited GLI1-DNA complex formation in EMSA., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The Wnt signal pathway modulates numerous biological processes, and its aberrant activation is related to various diseases. Therefore, inhibition of the Wnt signal may provide an effective (or efficient) strategy for these diseases. Cell-based luciferase assay targeting the Wnt signal (TOP assay) revealed that Hibiscus ficulneus extract inhibited the Wnt signal. The activity-guided isolation of the MeOH extract of H. ficulneus stems yielded four known (1-4) lignans along with myriceric acid (5). Compounds 1-4 potently inhibited the Wnt signal with TOPflash IC50 values of 1.0, 4.5, 6.3, and 1.9 μM, respectively. Compound 1 exhibited cytotoxicity against both Wnt-dependent (HCT116) and Wnt-independent (RKO) cells. Western blot analysis showed that 1 decreased the expression of full, cytosolic and nuclear β-catenin along with c-myc in STF/293 cells. Our results suggested that 1 may have inhibited the Wnt signal by decreasing β-catenin levels., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The inhibition of the Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway has emerged as an anti-cancer strategy. Three flavonoid glycosides including 2 new compounds (1-2) were isolated from Excoecaria agallocha as Hedgehog/GLI1-mediated transcriptional inhibitors and exhibited cytotoxicity against human pancreatic (PANC1) and prostate (DU145) cancer cells. Our data revealed that compound 1 clearly inhibited the expression of GLI-related proteins (PTCH and BCL-2) and blocked the translocation of GLI1 transcription factors into the nucleus in PANC1. Deleting the Smoothened (Smo) function in PANC1 treated with 1 led to downregulation of the mRNA expression of Ptch. This study describes the first Hh signaling inhibitor which blocks GLI1 movement into the nucleus without interfering with Smo., (Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

In the present study, we developed a high-throughput screening system for small molecule-inhibitors of the basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcriptional repressor factor Hes1. Successful dimerization of Hes1 immobilized on a microplate and fluorophore (Cy3)-labelled Hes1 was confirmed. Using this system, several natural products were identified as the first Hes1 dimer inhibitors. Of these, two compounds which were isolated from myxomycetes (true slime molds) inhibited Hes1 from N box-dependent suppression of the gene expression in C3H10T1/2 cells.

The absolute stereochemistry of melleumin A (1) and B (2), novel peptide compounds isolated from the myxomycete Physarum melleum, was determined by synthesis of their segments and by a modified Mosher's method. Total synthesis of melleumin B (2) was achieved by a stereoselective method, which provided further evidence for all the absolute stereochemistries of melleumin B (2). The Wnt signal inhibitory activities of 2 and its 10R-epimer 19 were evaluated. Compound 19 showed moderate inhibition of Wnt signal transcription, which suggests that melleumin analogues might be useful as Wnt signal inhibitors.

To determine the stereochemistry of dihydroarcyriarubin C (1), new bisindole alkaloid isolated from the myxomycete Arcyria ferruginea, cis- (2) and trans-dihydroarcyriarubin C (3) were synthesized. Comparison of their NMR characteristics allowed the trans stereochemistry of the natural product to be confirmed. Moreover, the Wnt signal inhibitory activities of 2 and 3 were compared with that of arcyriaflavin C (4), which is a natural product containing a bond between C-2 and C-2'. The cis-dihydroarcyriarubin C (2) showed moderate inhibition of Wnt signal transcription, which suggests that bisindole frameworks might be useful as small-molecule Wnt signal inhibitors.