Centella asiatica / Gotu kola → asiaticoside / Casp3 Cancer Research Results

Cen, Centella asiatica / Gotu kola → asiaticoside: Click to Expand ⟱

Features:

Centella asiatica / Gotu kola → Asiaticoside

Centella asiatica, commonly known as Gotu kola, is a medicinal botanical used mainly for wound healing, skin repair, microcirculation support, anti-inflammatory effects, and possible neuroprotective activity.

Primary database product: Centella asiatica standardized extract
Common name / alias: Gotu kola
Other aliases: Indian pennywort, tiger grass, cica
Best form: Standardized Centella asiatica extract / titrated triterpenes
Main active marker: Asiaticoside
Other key actives: Madecassoside, asiatic acid, madecassic acid
Compound class: Pentacyclic triterpenoid saponins / triterpenes

Asiaticoside is one of the major active and marker compounds in Centella asiatica.

Asiaticoside role: Active constituent / quality marker
Source: Centella asiatica / Gotu kola
Main activities: Wound repair, collagen synthesis, fibroblast support, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, skin barrier support
Relevant pathways: TGF-β/collagen, VEGF/angiogenesis, NF-κB, IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, COX-2/PGE2, oxidative stress pathways

Structure:

Centella asiatica / Gotu kola
  → Asiaticoside
  → Madecassoside
  → Asiatic acid
  → Madecassic acid

Centella asiatica / Gotu kola → asiaticoside — Centella asiatica is a medicinal botanical extract source, and asiaticoside is one of its major pentacyclic triterpenoid saponin marker constituents. The formal classification is botanical standardized extract / natural-product triterpenoid saponin modality, not an approved anticancer drug. The principal active family includes asiaticoside, madecassoside, asiatic acid, and madecassic acid; asiaticoside can also be metabolically linked to asiatic acid. Asiaticoside as the main active marker, with Centella asiatica standardized extract as the primary product.

Primary mechanisms (ranked):

NF-κB and inflammatory cytokine suppression, especially reduced TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, COX-2/PGE2, and downstream survival signaling in inflammatory and tumor models.
Mitochondrial apoptosis induction in cancer cells, with Bax:Bcl-2 shift, MMP loss, caspase-9 activation, caspase-3 activation, and p53/p21-associated cell-cycle arrest reported in preclinical models.
Anti-migration and anti-EMT effects, including suppression of p65/NF-κB-linked EMT, YAP1/VEGFA signaling, invasion, and radiation-induced migration in selected cancer-cell systems.
PI3K/Akt/mTOR/STAT3 modulation, more strongly supported for asiatic acid than for asiaticoside itself, with relevance to proliferation, survival, autophagy, and metastatic phenotype.
TGF-β/collagen/fibroblast and wound-repair axis activation in normal tissue contexts; beneficial for repair but mechanistically ambiguous in cancer because fibrosis and angiogenesis can be tumor-context dependent.
Oxidative-stress modulation, generally antioxidant and cytoprotective in normal cells; ROS/NRF2 effects are secondary and context-dependent rather than the core anticancer mechanism.

Bioavailability / PK relevance: Oral translation is constrained by variable extract composition, limited dissolution and bioavailability of triterpenes, metabolism of glycosides to aglycones, and formulation dependence. Standardized extracts such as ECa 233 and aqueous Centella asiatica products have human phase-1 PK data, but systemic exposure is still not equivalent to common high-concentration in-vitro cancer experiments.

In-vitro vs systemic exposure relevance: Cancer-cell studies commonly use micromolar asiaticoside or asiatic-acid exposures that may exceed or not cleanly map onto achievable plasma exposure after oral botanical dosing. Topical and local tissue uses are more plausible for skin/wound biology than systemic anticancer effects. For cancer translation, the entry should be treated as concentration- and formulation-dependent.

Clinical evidence status: Cancer relevance is weak / preclinical only, with no established oncology indication. Human evidence is stronger for wound healing, venous/skin-related uses, and early cognitive/AD-oriented safety or PK studies than for cancer treatment. AD relevance is possible / early clinical, with phase-1 target-engagement work in mild cognitive impairment or mild Alzheimer’s disease, but no proven disease-modifying efficacy.

Centella asiatica and Asiaticoside Mechanistic Profile

Rank	Pathway / Axis	Cancer Cells	Normal Cells	TSF	Primary Effect	Notes / Interpretation
1	NF-κB inflammatory survival axis	NF-κB↓, p65↓, TNF-α↓, IL-1β↓	NF-κB↓, inflammatory cytokines↓	R,G	Anti-inflammatory and anti-survival signaling	Most central cross-context mechanism; supports anticancer, neuroinflammatory, and wound-healing interpretations but is not cancer-specific.
2	Mitochondrial apoptosis	MMP↓, Bax:Bcl-2↑, caspase-9↑, caspase-3↑	Apoptosis↔ or ↓ in injury models (context-dependent)	G	Intrinsic apoptotic priming in tumor models	Preclinical cancer-cell effect; selectivity depends strongly on dose, cell line, and compound form.
3	Cell-cycle checkpoint and p53 axis	p53↑, p21↑, cyclin D1↓, CDK4↓	Cell-cycle stress↔ (context-dependent)	G	Growth arrest and reduced proliferation	cytostatic activity; best treated as model-dependent rather than universal.
4	EMT migration invasion axis	Migration↓, invasion↓, EMT↓, YAP1/VEGFA↓, p65↓	Repair migration↑ in wound contexts (context-dependent)	G	Reduced metastatic phenotype in selected models	Important because Centella can promote normal wound repair while suppressing tumor-cell invasion in some systems; interpretation is tissue-context dependent.
5	PI3K Akt mTOR STAT3 survival axis	PI3K/Akt↓, mTOR↓, STAT3↓ (mainly asiatic acid)	Mixed cytoprotection or survival signaling↔	R,G	Reduced survival, proliferation, and metastatic signaling	Better supported for asiatic acid than asiaticoside; include as related triterpene-family mechanism rather than asiaticoside-only claim.
6	Autophagy axis	LC3-II↑, autophagy↑ (model-dependent)	Autophagy↔ or ↑ (context-dependent)	G	Stress adaptation or autophagic cell death	Direction and therapeutic meaning are model-dependent; can be pro-death or protective depending on tumor context.
7	ROS antioxidant NRF2 stress axis	ROS↔ or ↑ during apoptosis (context-dependent)	Oxidative stress↓, antioxidant defense↑, NRF2↔ or ↑	R,G	Normal-cell protection and redox modulation	Secondary mechanism.
8	TGF-β collagen fibroblast repair axis	TGF-β effects↔ (context-dependent)	Collagen synthesis↑, fibroblast activity↑, wound repair↑	G	Tissue repair and matrix remodeling	Core for Centella’s non-cancer use; potentially undesirable in some tumor-stroma or fibrosis contexts.
9	VEGF angiogenesis axis	VEGFA↓ in some breast cancer models	Angiogenesis↑ during wound repair (context-dependent)	G	Opposite effects depending on cancer versus repair context	Important interpretive caution: normal repair biology and cancer biology may diverge.
10	Radiosensitization migration constraint	Radiation-induced migration↓, invasion↓	Radioprotection↔ unknown	G	Anti-invasive adjunct signal after irradiation	Evidence is preclinical and more anti-migration than classic radiosensitization
11	Clinical Translation Constraint	High in-vitro exposure required (often)	Rare hepatotoxicity risk; product variability	G	Limits systemic anticancer translation	Bioavailability, formulation, extract standardization, dose limitation, and weak oncology trial evidence are the main constraints.

P: 0–30 min R: 30 min–3 hr G: >3 hr

AD relevance: Possible / preclinical. Interest is mainly through neuroinflammation, oxidative stress, mitochondrial protection, and general neuroprotective mechanisms.

Alzheimer’s disease relevance: Centella asiatica / Gotu kola has a plausible but unproven AD-oriented profile. The strongest rationale is not direct amyloid clearance as an established clinical effect, but combined modulation of neuroinflammation, oxidative stress, mitochondrial metabolism, synaptic or neuronal viability markers, and vascular/microcirculatory support. Human evidence is early: phase-1 PK/safety and target-engagement studies exist in older adults with mild cognitive impairment or mild Alzheimer’s disease, but efficacy remains unproven.

Clinical evidence status: AD / cognition evidence is preclinical plus small human and phase-1 clinical work. Early translational / investigational rather than established therapy.

Cancer relevance: Weak / preclinical.

AD-Oriented Mechanistic Profile

Rank	Pathway / Axis	Modulation	Primary Effect	Notes / Interpretation
1	Neuroinflammation NF-κB cytokine axis	NF-κB↓, TNF-α↓, IL-1β↓	Reduced inflammatory signaling	Most defensible AD-relevant mechanism; not disease-specific.
2	Mitochondrial metabolism neuronal viability	Mitochondrial function↑, metabolic stress↓	Neuronal bioenergetic support	Central to current target-engagement rationale in cognitive impairment studies.
3	Oxidative stress DNA oxidation axis	Oxidative stress↓, 8OHdG↓ (candidate marker)	Reduced oxidative injury	Relevant to trial biomarker strategy; clinical disease modification unproven.
4	Synaptic memory and neuronal morphology axis	Learning and memory markers↑ (model-dependent)	Cognitive-support signal in animals	Preclinical support is stronger than human efficacy evidence.
5	Amyloid-associated pathology	β-amyloid stress↓ (model-dependent)	Reduced amyloid-model metabolic disturbance	model-dependent, not as proven anti-amyloid clinical activity.
6	Clinical Translation Constraint	Bioavailability↔, extract variability↑, evidence limitation↑	Limits AD clinical interpretation	Current status is investigational; formulation, heavy-metal quality, dose, and trial endpoints matter.

Casp3, CPP32, Cysteinyl aspartate specific proteinase-3: Click to Expand ⟱

Source:

Type:

Also known as CP32.
Cysteinyl aspartate specific proteinase-3 (Caspase-3) is a common key protein in the apoptosis and pyroptosis pathways, and when activated, the expression level of tumor suppressor gene Gasdermin E (GSDME) determines the mechanism of tumor cell death.
As a key protein of apoptosis, caspase-3 can also cleave GSDME and induce pyroptosis. Loss of caspase activity is an important cause of tumor progression.
Many anticancer strategies rely on the promotion of apoptosis in cancer cells as a means to shrink tumors. Crucial for apoptotic function are executioner caspases, most notably caspase-3, that proteolyze a variety of proteins, inducing cell death. Paradoxically, overexpression of procaspase-3 (PC-3), the low-activity zymogen precursor to caspase-3, has been reported in a variety of cancer types. Until recently, this counterintuitive overexpression of a pro-apoptotic protein in cancer has been puzzling. Recent studies suggest subapoptotic caspase-3 activity may promote oncogenic transformation, a possible explanation for the enigmatic overexpression of PC-3. Herein, the overexpression of PC-3 in cancer and its mechanistic basis is reviewed; collectively, the data suggest the potential for exploitation of PC-3 overexpression with PC-3 activators as a targeted anticancer strategy.
Caspase 3 is the main effector caspase and has a key role in apoptosis. In many types of cancer, including breast, lung, and colon cancer, caspase-3 expression is reduced or absent.
On the other hand, some studies have shown that high levels of caspase-3 expression can be associated with a better prognosis in certain types of cancer, such as breast cancer. This suggests that caspase-3 may play a role in the elimination of cancer cells, and that therapies aimed at activating caspase-3 may be effective in treating certain types of cancer.
Procaspase-3 is a apoptotic marker protein.
Prognostic significance:
• High Cas3 expression: Associated with good prognosis and increased sensitivity to chemotherapy in breast, gastric, lung, and pancreatic cancers.
• Low Cas3 expression: Linked to poor prognosis and increased risk of recurrence in colorectal, hepatocellular carcinoma, ovarian, and prostate cancers.

Scientific Papers found: Click to Expand⟱

6656-

Cen,

Recent insights into therapeutic potential and nanostructured carrier systems of Centella asiatica: An evidence-based review

Review,

Var,

Review,

AD,

AntiCan↑, *AntiDiabetic↑, *neuroP↑, *antiOx↑, *cardioP↑, *Inflam↓, *hepatoP↑, *AntiAge↑, *AST↓, *ALAT↓, *LDH↓, *lipid-P↓, Casp3↑, *memory↑, *Wound Healing↑, eff↑,

6652-

Cen,

AA-PMe, a novel asiatic acid derivative, induces apoptosis and suppresses proliferation, migration, and invasion of gastric cancer cells

in-vitro,

GC,

SGC-7901

in-vitro,

GC,

HGC27

TumCP↓, selectivity↑, TumCCA↑, cycD1/CCND1↓, CDK4↓, Apoptosis↑, Bcl-2↓, BAX↑, cMyc↓, Casp3↑, TumCMig↓, TumCI↓, MMP2↓, MMP9↓, tumCV↓,

6651-

Cen,

Study of the cytotoxicity of asiaticoside on rats and tumour cells

vitro+vivo,

BC,

MCF-7

40 μM

Sprague–Dawley (SD) rats

Casp3↑, TNF-α↓, IL1β↓, Apoptosis↑, TumCCA↑, TumVol↓, radioP↑, Inflam↓,

6615-

Cen,

Asiaticoside suppresses cell proliferation by inhibiting the NF-κB signaling pathway in colorectal cancer

vitro+vivo,

CRC,

HCT116

mice

in-vitro,

CRC,

SW480

in-vitro,

CRC,

LoVo

Dose↝, TumCP↓, selectivity↑, MMP↓, Apoptosis↑, TumCCA↑, NF-kB↓, CDK4↓, cycD1/CCND1↓, Casp9↑, Casp3↑, Bax:Bcl2↑, TumCG↓, ChemoSen↑, TNF-α↓, IL1β↓, P53↑, P21↑,

6645-

Cen,

Can Asiatic Acid from Centella asiatica Be a Potential Remedy in Cancer Therapy?—A Review

Review,

Var,

TumCD↑, TumCG↓, TumMeta↓, PI3K↓, Akt↓, mTOR↓, P70S6K↓, STAT3↓, N-cadherin↓, β-catenin/ZEB1↓, CLDN1↓, Vim↓, TumAuto↑, *BioAv↓, Casp3↑, ROS↑, MMP15↓, MMP↓, eff↑, *toxicity↓,

Showing Research Papers: 1 to 5 of 5

* indicates research on normal cells as opposed to diseased cells
Total Research Paper Matches: 5

Pathway results for Effect on Cancer / Diseased Cells:

Functional Outcomes ⓘ

AntiCan↑, 1, radioP↑, 1, TumVol↓, 1,
Total Targets: 45

Pathway results for Effect on Normal Cells:

Redox & Oxidative Stress ⓘ

antiOx↑, 1, lipid-P↓, 1,

Core Metabolism/Glycolysis ⓘ

ALAT↓, 1, LDH↓, 1,

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling ⓘ

Inflam↓, 1,

Drug Metabolism & Resistance ⓘ

BioAv↓, 1,

Clinical Biomarkers ⓘ

ALAT↓, 1, AST↓, 1, LDH↓, 1,

Functional Outcomes ⓘ

AntiAge↑, 1, AntiDiabetic↑, 1, cardioP↑, 1, hepatoP↑, 1, memory↑, 1, neuroP↑, 1, toxicity↓, 1, Wound Healing↑, 1,
Total Targets: 17

Scientific Paper Hit Count for: Casp3, CPP32, Cysteinyl aspartate specific proteinase-3

5 Centella asiatica / Gotu kola → asiaticoside

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#:417  Target#:42  State#:%  Dir#:2
  wNotes=0  sortOrder:rid,rpid

Centella asiatica / Gotu kola → asiaticoside / Casp3 Cancer Research Results