Quercetin / PKM2 Cancer Research Results

QC, Quercetin: Click to Expand ⟱
Features:
Plant pigment (flavonoid) found in red wine, onions, green tea, apples and berries.
Quercetin is thought to contribute to anticancer effects through several mechanisms:
-Antioxidant Activity:
-Induction of Apoptosis:modify Bax:Bcl-2 ratio
-Anti-inflammatory Effects:
-Cell Cycle Arrest:
-Inhibition of Angiogenesis and Metastasis: (VEGF)

Cellular Pathways:
-PI3K/Akt/mTOR Pathway: central to cell proliferation, survival, and metabolism.
-MAPK/ERK Pathway: influencing cell proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis.
-NF-κB Pathway: downregulate NF-κB
-JAK/STAT Pathway: interfere with the activation of STAT3
-Apoptotic Pathways: intrinsic (mitochondrial) and extrinsic (death receptor-mediated) pathways

Quercetin has been used at doses around 500–1000 mg per day
Quercetin’s bioavailability from foods or standard supplements can be low.

-Note half-life 11 to 28 hours.
BioAv low 1-10%, poor water-solubility, consuming with fat may improve bioavialability. also piperine or VitC.
Pathways:
- induce ROS production in cancer cells (higher dose). Typicallys Lowers ROS in normal cells(unless it is high dose?)or depends on Redox status?. "quercetin paradox"
- ROS↑ related: MMP↓(ΔΨm), ER Stress↑, UPR↑, GRP78↑, Ca+2↑, Cyt‑c↑, Caspases↑, DNA damage↑, cl-PARP↑, HSP↓, Prx,
- Confusing info about Lowering AntiOxidant defense in Cancer Cells: NRF2↓(some contrary), TrxR↓**, SOD↓(contrary), GSH↓ Catalase↓(contrary), HO1↓(some contrary), GPx↓(some contrary)
- Raises AntiOxidant defense in Normal Cells: ROS↓, NRF2↑, SOD↑, GSH↑, Catalase↑,
- lowers Inflammation : NF-kB↓, COX2↓, p38↓, Pro-Inflammatory Cytokines : NLRP3↓, IL-1β↓, TNF-α↓, IL-6↓, IL-8↓
- inhibit Growth/Metastases : TumMeta↓, TumCG↓, EMT↓, MMPs↓, MMP2↓, MMP9↓, TIMP2, IGF-1↓, uPA↓, VEGF↓, ROCK1↓, FAK↓, NF-κB↓, CXCR4↓, SDF1↓, TGF-β↓, α-SMA↓, ERK↓
- reactivate genes thereby inhibiting cancer cell growth : HDAC↓, DNMTs↓, EZH2↓, P53↑, HSP↓, Sp proteins↓, TET↑
- cause Cell cycle arrest : TumCCA↑, cyclin D1↓, cyclin E↓, CDK2↓, CDK4↓, CDK6↓,
- inhibits Migration/Invasion : TumCMig↓, TumCI↓, TNF-α↓, FAK↓, ERK↓, EMT↓, TOP1↓, TET1,
- inhibits glycolysis and ATP depletion : HIF-1α↓, PKM2, cMyc↓, GLUT1↓, LDH↓, LDHA↓, HK2↓, PFKs↓, PDKs↓, ECAR↓, OXPHOS↓, GRP78↑, GlucoseCon↓
- inhibits angiogenesis↓ : VEGF↓, HIF-1α↓, Notch↓, FGF↓, PDGF↓, EGFR↓,
- some indication of inhibiting Cancer Stem Cells : CSC↓, CK2↓, Hh↓, CD24↓, β-catenin↓, Notch2↓,
- Others: PI3K↓, AKT↓, JAK↓, STAT↓, Wnt↓, β-catenin↓, AMPK, α↓, ERK↓, JNK, - SREBP (related to cholesterol).
- Synergies: chemo-sensitization, chemoProtective, RadioSensitizer, RadioProtective, Others(review target notes), Neuroprotective, Cognitive, Renoprotection, Hepatoprotective, CardioProtective,

- Selectivity: Cancer Cells vs Normal Cells

Rank Pathway / Axis Cancer Cells Normal Cells Label Primary Interpretation Notes
1 Reactive oxygen species (ROS) ↑ ROS (dose-, metal-, context-dependent) ↓ ROS Conditional Driver Biphasic redox modulation Quercetin exhibits pro-oxidant behavior in cancer cells while protecting normal cells
2 Mitochondrial integrity / intrinsic apoptosis ↓ ΔΨm; ↑ caspase activation ↔ preserved Driver Execution of intrinsic apoptosis Mitochondrial dysfunction is a central apoptosis route in cancer cells
3 PI3K → AKT → mTOR axis ↓ AKT / ↓ mTOR ↔ adaptive suppression Driver Growth and survival inhibition AKT/mTOR suppression is a consistently reported upstream effect in cancer models
4 NF-κB signaling ↓ NF-κB activation ↓ inflammatory NF-κB tone Secondary Reduced survival and inflammatory transcription NF-κB inhibition contributes to chemosensitization and apoptosis susceptibility
5 MAPK signaling (JNK / p38) ↑ JNK / ↑ p38 ↔ minimal Secondary Stress-mediated apoptosis signaling MAPK activation supports apoptosis downstream of redox stress
6 Cell cycle regulation ↑ G1/S or G2/M arrest ↔ largely spared Phenotypic Cytostatic growth control Cell-cycle arrest reflects disruption of growth signaling
7 HIF-1α hypoxia signaling ↓ HIF-1α ↔ minimal Secondary Reduced hypoxia tolerance Quercetin interferes with hypoxia-driven transcriptional programs
8 NRF2 antioxidant response ↑ NRF2 (adaptive, context-dependent) ↑ NRF2 (protective) Adaptive Stress compensation NRF2 induction reflects redox buffering rather than primary cytotoxicity


PKM2, Pyruvate Kinase, Muscle 2: Click to Expand ⟱
Source:
Type: enzyme
PKM2 (Pyruvate Kinase, Muscle 2) is an enzyme that plays a crucial role in glycolysis, the process by which cells convert glucose into energy. PKM2 is a key regulatory enzyme in the glycolytic pathway, and it is primarily expressed in various tissues, including muscle, brain, and cancer cells.
-C-myc is a common oncogene that enhances aerobic glycolysis in the cancer cells by transcriptionally activating GLUT1, HK2, PKM2 and LDH-A
-PKM2 has been shown to be overexpressed in many types of tumors, including breast, lung, and colon cancer. This overexpression may contribute to the development and progression of cancer by promoting glycolysis and energy production in cancer cells.
-inhibition of PKM2 may cause ATP depletion and inhibiting glycolysis.
-PK exists in four isoforms: PKM1, PKM2, PKR, and PKL
-PKM2 plays a role in the regulation of glucose metabolism in diabetes.
-PKM2 is involved in the regulation of cell proliferation, apoptosis, and autophagy.
– Pyruvate kinase catalyzes the final, rate-limiting step of glycolysis, converting phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) to pyruvate with the production of ATP.
– The PKM2 isoform is uniquely regulated and can exist in both highly active tetrameric and less active dimeric forms.
– Cancer cells often favor the dimeric form of PKM2 to slow pyruvate production, thereby accumulating upstream glycolytic intermediates that can be diverted into anabolic pathways to support cell growth and proliferation.
– Under low oxygen conditions, cancer cells rely on altered metabolic pathways in which PKM2 is a key player. – The shift to aerobic glycolysis (Warburg effect) orchestrated in part by PKM2 helps tumor cells survive and grow in hypoxic conditions.

– Elevated expression of PKM2 is frequently observed in many cancer types, including lung, breast, colorectal, and pancreatic cancers.
– High levels of PKM2 are often correlated with enhanced tumor aggressiveness, poor differentiation, and advanced clinical stage.

PKM2 in carcinogenesis and oncotherapy

Inhibitors of PKM2:
-Shikonin, Resveratrol, Baicalein, EGCG, Apigenin, Curcumin, Ursolic Acid, Citrate (best known as an allosteric inhibitor of phosphofructokinase-1 (PFK-1), a key rate-limiting enzyme in glycolysis) potential to directly inhibit or modulate PKM2 is less well established

Full List of PKM2 inhibitors from Database
-key connected observations: Glycolysis↓, lactateProd↓, ROS↑ in cancer cell, while some result for opposite effect on normal cells.
Tumor pyruvate kinase M2 modulators

Flavonoids effect on PKM2
Compounds name IC50/AC50uM Effect
Flavonols
1. Fisetin 0.90uM Inhibition
2. Rutin 7.80uM Inhibition
3. Galangin 8.27uM Inhibition
4. Quercetin 9.24uM Inhibition
5. Kaempferol 9.88uM Inhibition
6. Morin hydrate 37.20uM Inhibition
7. Myricetin 0.51uM Activation
8. Quercetin 3-b- D-glucoside 1.34uM Activation
9. Quercetin 3-D -galactoside 27-107uM Ineffective
Flavanons
10. Neoeriocitrin 0.65uM Inhibition
11. Neohesperidin 14.20uM Inhibition
12. Naringin 16.60uM Inhibition
13. Hesperidin 17.30uM Inhibition
14. Hesperitin 29.10uM Inhibition
15. Naringenin 70.80uM Activation
Flavanonols
16. (-)-Catechin gallateuM 0.85 Inhibition
17. (±)-Taxifolin 1.16uM Inhibition
18. (-)-Epicatechin 1.33uM Inhibition
19. (+)-Gallocatechin 4-16uM Ineffective
Phenolic acids
20. Ferulic 11.4uM Inhibition
21. Syringic and 13.8uM Inhibition
22. Caffeic acid 36.3uM Inhibition
23. 3,4-Dihydroxybenzoic acid 78.7uM Inhibition
24. Gallic acid 332.6uM Inhibition
25. Shikimic acid 990uM Inhibition
26. p-Coumaric acid 22.2uM Activation
27. Sinapinic acids 26.2uM Activation
28. Vanillic 607.9uM Activation


Scientific Papers found: Click to Expand⟱
910- QC,    The Anti-Cancer Effect of Quercetin: Molecular Implications in Cancer Metabolism
tumCV↓, Apoptosis↑, PI3k/Akt/mTOR↓, Wnt/(β-catenin)↓, MAPK↝, ERK↝, TumCCA↑, H2O2↑, ROS↑, TumAuto↑, MMPs↓, P53↑, Casp3↑, Hif1a↓, cFLIP↓, IL6↓, IL10↓, lactateProd↓, Glycolysis↓, PKM2↓, GLUT1↓, COX2↓, VEGF↓, OCR↓, ECAR↓, STAT3↓, MMP2↓, MMP9:TIMP1↓, mTOR↓,
2344- QC,    Quercetin: A natural solution with the potential to combat liver fibrosis
- Review, Nor, NA
*HK2↓, *PFKP↓, *PKM2↓, *hepatoP↑, *ALAT↓, *AST↓, *Glycolysis↓, *lactateProd↓, *GlucoseCon↓, *CXCL1↓, *Inflam↓,
2343- QC,    Pharmacological Activity of Quercetin: An Updated Review
- Review, Nor, NA
*ROS↓, *GSH↑, *Catalase↑, *SOD↑, *MDA↓, *GPx↑, *Copper↓, *Iron↓, Apoptosis↓, TumCCA↑, MMP2↓, MMP9↓, GlucoseCon↓, lactateProd↓, PKM2↓, GLUT1↓, LDHA↓, ROS↑,
2341- QC,    Quercetin suppresses the mobility of breast cancer by suppressing glycolysis through Akt-mTOR pathway mediated autophagy induction
- in-vitro, BC, MCF-7 - in-vitro, BC, MDA-MB-231 - in-vivo, NA, NA
MMP2↓, MMP9↓, VEGF↓, Glycolysis↓, lactateProd↓, PKM2↓, GLUT1↓, LDHA↓, TumAuto↑, Akt↓, mTOR↓, TumMeta↓, MMP3↓, eff↓, GlucoseCon↓, lactateProd↓, TumAuto↑, LC3B-II↑,
2340- QC,    Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma Cells with Acquired Resistance to Erlotinib Are Sensitive to Anti-Cancer Effect of Quercetin via Pyruvate Kinase M2 (PKM2)
- in-vitro, OS, NA
TumCG↓, GlucoseCon↓, TumCI↓, GLUT1↓, PKM2↓, LDHA↓, Glycolysis↓, lactateProd↓, HK2↓, eff↑,
2339- QC,    Quercetin protects against LPS-induced lung injury in mice via SIRT1-mediated suppression of PKM2 nuclear accumulation
- in-vivo, Nor, NA
*Inflam↓, *antiOx↑, *NLRP3↓, *Sepsis↓, *PKM2↓, *SIRT1↓,
2338- QC,    Quercetin: A Flavonoid with Potential for Treating Acute Lung Injury
- Review, Nor, NA
*SIRT1↑, *NLRP3↓, *Inflam↓, *TNF-α↓, *IL1β↓, *IL6↓, *PKM2↓, *HO-1↑, *ROS↓, *NO↓, *MDA↓, *antiOx↑, *COX2↓, *HMGB1↓, *iNOS↓, *NF-kB↓,

Showing Research Papers: 1 to 7 of 7

* indicates research on normal cells as opposed to diseased cells
Total Research Paper Matches: 7

Pathway results for Effect on Cancer / Diseased Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress

H2O2↑, 1,   ROS↑, 2,  

Mitochondria & Bioenergetics

OCR↓, 1,  

Core Metabolism/Glycolysis

ECAR↓, 1,   GlucoseCon↓, 3,   Glycolysis↓, 3,   HK2↓, 1,   lactateProd↓, 5,   LDHA↓, 3,   PI3k/Akt/mTOR↓, 1,   PKM2↓, 4,  

Cell Death

Akt↓, 1,   Apoptosis↓, 1,   Apoptosis↑, 1,   Casp3↑, 1,   cFLIP↓, 1,   MAPK↝, 1,  

Transcription & Epigenetics

tumCV↓, 1,  

Autophagy & Lysosomes

LC3B-II↑, 1,   TumAuto↑, 3,  

DNA Damage & Repair

P53↑, 1,  

Cell Cycle & Senescence

TumCCA↑, 2,  

Proliferation, Differentiation & Cell State

ERK↝, 1,   mTOR↓, 2,   STAT3↓, 1,   TumCG↓, 1,   Wnt/(β-catenin)↓, 1,  

Migration

MMP2↓, 3,   MMP3↓, 1,   MMP9↓, 2,   MMP9:TIMP1↓, 1,   MMPs↓, 1,   TumCI↓, 1,   TumMeta↓, 1,  

Angiogenesis & Vasculature

Hif1a↓, 1,   VEGF↓, 2,  

Barriers & Transport

GLUT1↓, 4,  

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling

COX2↓, 1,   IL10↓, 1,   IL6↓, 1,  

Drug Metabolism & Resistance

eff↓, 1,   eff↑, 1,  

Clinical Biomarkers

IL6↓, 1,  
Total Targets: 43

Pathway results for Effect on Normal Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress

antiOx↑, 2,   Catalase↑, 1,   Copper↓, 1,   GPx↑, 1,   GSH↑, 1,   HO-1↑, 1,   Iron↓, 1,   MDA↓, 2,   ROS↓, 2,   SOD↑, 1,  

Core Metabolism/Glycolysis

ALAT↓, 1,   GlucoseCon↓, 1,   Glycolysis↓, 1,   HK2↓, 1,   lactateProd↓, 1,   PFKP↓, 1,   PKM2↓, 3,   SIRT1↓, 1,   SIRT1↑, 1,  

Cell Death

iNOS↓, 1,  

Angiogenesis & Vasculature

NO↓, 1,  

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling

COX2↓, 1,   CXCL1↓, 1,   HMGB1↓, 1,   IL1β↓, 1,   IL6↓, 1,   Inflam↓, 3,   NF-kB↓, 1,   TNF-α↓, 1,  

Protein Aggregation

NLRP3↓, 2,  

Clinical Biomarkers

ALAT↓, 1,   AST↓, 1,   IL6↓, 1,  

Functional Outcomes

hepatoP↑, 1,  

Infection & Microbiome

Sepsis↓, 1,  
Total Targets: 35

Scientific Paper Hit Count for: PKM2, Pyruvate Kinase, Muscle 2
7 Quercetin
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#:140  Target#:772  State#:%  Dir#:%
wNotes=0 sortOrder:rid,rpid

 

Home Page