DTS(dibenzyl trisulphide) from Anamu / mitResp Cancer Research Results

Anamu, DTS(dibenzyl trisulphide) from Anamu: Click to Expand ⟱
Features:
Anamu (Guinea Hen Weed) Anamu (Petiveria alliacea)
A herb that is indigenous to the Amazon rainforest and the tropical areas of the Caribbean, Central and South America and Africa.
Anamu has been used for a wide variety of conditions, including arthritis, digestive disorders, infections, diabetes, cancer, for pain relief, and to induce abortion.

Anamu — Anamu is the medicinal plant Petiveria alliacea, also called Guinea hen weed, with dibenzyl trisulfide as a prominent organosulfur bioactive linked to anticancer mechanistic work. It is best classified as a botanical extract / organosulfur natural-product source rather than a single defined drug, because published studies use crude extracts, standardized fractions, and isolated dibenzyl trisulfide. The plant is native or naturalized across tropical South and Central America, the Caribbean, parts of Africa, and the southeastern United States. Translational relevance is limited by heterogeneous extract chemistry, sparse human efficacy data, and potential reproductive, genotoxic, and hepatic safety constraints.

Primary mechanisms (ranked):

  1. Direct cytotoxic stress in cancer cells through lysosomal membrane permeabilization and caspase-independent cell death, especially shown for isolated DTS in triple-negative breast cancer models.
  2. Suppression of proliferative kinase signaling, including reported RSK1 inhibition by DTS and context-dependent MAPK axis modulation.
  3. Metabolic suppression in leukemia and tumor-cell models, including ↓ glucose uptake, ↓ oxygen consumption, ↓ intracellular ATP, and altered glycolytic / oxidative phosphorylation metabolites.
  4. ROS-linked antiproliferative stress, with ROS increase reported in some leukemia models; this appears secondary/context-dependent rather than a universal primary axis.
  5. Migration and metastasis suppression in preclinical models, linked to reduced tumor burden, reduced blast infiltration, and immune-response modulation in murine leukemia work.
  6. Immune / cytokine modulation, including older reports of Th1/Th2 cytokine switching, but this is not yet a validated oncology clinical mechanism.
  7. Chemoprevention-like CYP1A inhibition by DTS, which may reduce activation of some environmental procarcinogens but is distinct from direct tumor killing.

Bioavailability / PK relevance: Human PK for Anamu extracts or isolated DTS is not well established. Oral use is common in supplements and teas, but standardized exposure, active-metabolite formation, tissue distribution, and dose-response relationships are poorly defined. Extract identity is critical because water, ethanol, and fractionated preparations are not interchangeable.

In-vitro vs systemic exposure relevance: Most anticancer evidence is in vitro or murine, and common cell-culture concentrations may not map to achievable human plasma or tumor exposure. For crude extracts, concentration equivalence is especially weak because active DTS and other sulfur constituents vary by plant part, extraction method, and storage.

Clinical evidence status: Preclinical dominant. One registered phase Ib/II protocol is evaluating standardized Anamu extract as an adjunct with conventional therapy in metastatic gastrointestinal tumors and acute leukemias, but efficacy is not established. MSKCC states that Petiveria alliacea has not been shown to treat cancer in humans. A small osteoarthritis trial did not show benefit over placebo.

Anamu Mechanistic Profile

Rank Pathway / Axis Cancer Cells Normal Cells TSF Primary Effect Notes / Interpretation
1 Lysosomal membrane permeabilization ↑ lysosomal destabilization; ↑ cathepsin-linked stress; ↑ caspase-independent death Unknown selectivity; normal-cell cytotoxicity not adequately resolved G Cell death induction Strongest modern isolated-DTS mechanism; most relevant where apoptosis resistance limits therapy response.
2 RSK1 and MAPK signaling ↓ RSK1 activity; MAPK modulation context-dependent Potential signaling effects unclear R/G Proliferation signaling disruption DTS literature emphasizes kinase inhibition or ERK/MAPK suppression; direction should be treated as context-dependent.
3 Glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation ↓ glucose uptake; ↓ OCR; ↓ ATP; ↓ proliferative metabolites Unknown; potential energy-metabolism liability in high-demand normal tissues not defined G Metabolic growth constraint Important for leukemia models and drug-resistant tumor metabolism, but extract-specific and not yet PK-linked.
4 ROS increase secondary ↑ ROS in some leukemia models; antiproliferative stress Possible oxidative stress at high or poorly standardized exposure R/G Stress amplification ROS appears mechanistically relevant but not universal; avoid assuming NRF2 direction without model-specific data.
5 NRF2 antioxidant response ↔ insufficient direct evidence for consistent modulation ↔ insufficient direct evidence G Uncertain stress-response adaptation Do not list as a core Anamu mechanism unless a specific study reports NRF2 or downstream antioxidant targets.
6 Migration and metastasis programs ↓ migration; ↓ metastasis-related behavior; ↓ tumor burden in murine AML model Unknown G Invasion suppression Preclinical evidence supports antimetastatic potential, but clinical relevance remains unproven.
7 Immune and cytokine balance ↓ immunosuppressive tumor burden signals in murine leukemia context ↑ or ↔ cytokine modulation; Th1/Th2 shift reported historically G Host immune modulation Potential adjunctive axis; not sufficiently validated for clinical cancer use.
8 CYP1A carcinogen activation ↓ CYP1A-mediated procarcinogen activation potential ↓ CYP1A activity possible R/G Chemoprevention-like enzyme inhibition DTS was reported as a direct reversible competitive CYP1A inhibitor; this is more relevant to carcinogen activation than treatment of established tumors.
9 Cell cycle arrest ↑ growth arrest; ↓ proliferation Unknown G Antiproliferative effect Likely downstream of metabolic and kinase stress rather than an independent primary mechanism.
10 Clinical Translation Constraint Extract heterogeneity; limited human cancer efficacy data; uncertain achievable exposure Pregnancy concern; genotoxicity signals; possible liver injury; supplement quality variability G Limits clinical deployment Not an approved oncology drug; standardized clinical extract data should not be generalized to all commercial Anamu products.

P: 0–30 min R: 30 min–3 hr G: >3 hr
mitResp, mitochondrial respiration: Click to Expand ⟱
Source:
Type:
Mitochondrial respiration plays a crucial role in the development and progression of cancer. Cancer cells often exhibit altered metabolic profiles, including changes in mitochondrial respiration, to support their rapid growth and proliferation.

In cancer cells, mitochondrial respiration is often downregulated, and instead, they rely on glycolysis for energy production, even in the presence of oxygen. This phenomenon is known as the "Warburg effect."

There are several key players involved in the regulation of mitochondrial respiration in cancer cells, including:

Pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH): a critical enzyme that converts pyruvate into acetyl-CoA, which is then fed into the citric acid cycle.
Citrate synthase: an enzyme that catalyzes the first step of the citric acid cycle.
Succinate dehydrogenase (SDH): an enzyme that participates in both the citric acid cycle and the electron transport chain.
Cytochrome c oxidase (COX): the final enzyme in the electron transport chain, responsible for generating ATP.
Alterations in the expression and activity of these enzymes can impact mitochondrial respiration in cancer cells. For example, increased expression of PDH and citrate synthase can enhance mitochondrial respiration, while decreased expression of SDH and COX can impair it.

Additionally, various transcription factors and signaling pathways regulate mitochondrial respiration in cancer cells, including:

HIF-1α (hypoxia-inducible factor 1 alpha): a transcription factor that promotes glycolysis and suppresses mitochondrial respiration in response to hypoxia.
c-Myc: a transcription factor that regulates the expression of genes involved in mitochondrial respiration and biogenesis.
PI3K/Akt/mTOR: a signaling pathway that promotes cell growth and proliferation, in part by regulating mitochondrial respiration.
Scientific Papers found: Click to Expand⟱
6596- Anamu,    Effect of Petiveria alliacea Extracts on Metabolism of K562 Myeloid Leukemia Cells
- in-vitro, AML, K562
TumCP↓, OCR↓, ATP↓, TumCCA↑, ECAR↑, Glycolysis↓, lactateProd↓, mitResp↓,

Showing Research Papers: 1 to 1 of 1

* indicates research on normal cells as opposed to diseased cells
Total Research Paper Matches: 1

Pathway results for Effect on Cancer / Diseased Cells:


Mitochondria & Bioenergetics(tgid=3) ⓘ

ATP↓, 1,   mitResp↓, 1,   OCR↓, 1,  

Core Metabolism/Glycolysis(tgid=4) ⓘ

ECAR↑, 1,   Glycolysis↓, 1,   lactateProd↓, 1,  

Cell Cycle & Senescence(tgid=11) ⓘ

TumCCA↑, 1,  

Migration(tgid=13) ⓘ

TumCP↓, 1,  
Total Targets: 8

Pathway results for Effect on Normal Cells:


Total Targets: 0

Scientific Paper Hit Count for: mitResp, mitochondrial respiration
Query results interpretion may depend on "conditions" listed in the research papers.
Such Conditions may include : 
  -low or high Dose
  -format for product, such as nano of lipid formations
  -different cell line effects
  -synergies with other products 
  -if effect was for normal or cancerous cells

Filter Conditions: Pro/AntiFlg:%  IllCat:%  CanType:%  Cells:%  prod#:193  Target#:952  State#:%  Dir#:1
  wNotes=0  sortOrder:rid,rpid

 

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