condition found tbRes List
TQ, Thymoquinone: Click to Expand ⟱
Features: Anti-oxidant, anti-tumor
Thymoquinone is a bioactive compound found in the seeds of Nigella sativa, commonly known as black seed or black cumin.
Pathways:
-Cell cycle arrest, apoptosis induction, ROS generation in cancer cells
-inhibit the activation of NF-κB, Suppress the PI3K/Akt signaling cascade
-Inhibit angiogenic factors such as VEGF, MMPs
-Inhibit HDACs, UHRF1, and DNMTs

-Note half-life 3-6hrs.
BioAv low oral bioavailability due to its lipophilic nature. Note refridgeration of Black seed oil improves the stability of TQ.
DIY: ~1 part lecithin : 2–3 parts black seed oil : 4–5 parts warm water. (chat ai)
Pathways:
- usually induce ROS production in Cancer cells, and lowers ROS in normal cells
- ROS↑ related: MMP↓(ΔΨm), ER Stress↑, GRP78↑, Cyt‑c↑, Caspases↑, DNA damage↑, cl-PARP↑, HSP↓, Prx,
- May Low AntiOxidant defense in Cancer Cells: NRF2↓(usually contrary), GSH↓ HO1↓(contrary), GPx↓
- 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↓, VEGF↓, FAK↓, NF-κB↓, CXCR4↓, TGF-β↓, 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↓,
- inhibits glycolysis /Warburg Effect and ATP depletion : HIF-1α↓, PKM2↓, cMyc↓, GLUT1↓, LDH↓, LDHA↓, HK2↓, PDKs↓, GRP78↑, GlucoseCon↓
- inhibits angiogenesis↓ : VEGF↓, HIF-1α↓, Notch↓, EGFR↓, Integrins↓,
- Others: PI3K↓, AKT↓, JAK↓, STAT↓, Wnt↓, β-catenin↓, AMPK, α↓, ERK↓, JNK,
- Synergies: chemo-sensitization, chemoProtective, RadioSensitizer, RadioProtective, Others(review target notes), Neuroprotective, Cognitive, Renoprotection, Hepatoprotective, CardioProtective,

- Selectivity: Cancer Cells vs Normal Cells


PI3K, Phosphatidylinositide-3-Kinases: Click to Expand ⟱
Source: HalifaxProj(inhibit) CGL-CS
Type:
Phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PtdIns3K or PI3K) is a family of enzymes that play a crucial role in cell signaling pathways, particularly in the regulation of cell growth, survival, and metabolism. The PI3K pathway is one of the most frequently altered pathways in human cancer. Inhibition of the PI3K pathway has been explored as a therapeutic strategy for cancer treatment. Several PI3K inhibitors have been developed and are currently being tested in clinical trials. These inhibitors can target specific components of the pathway, such as PI3K, AKT, or mTOR.

Class I phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)
Class III PtdIns3K
In contrast to the class III PtdIns3K as a positive regulator of autophagy, class I PI3K-AKT signaling has an opposing effect on the initiation of autophagy.

PI3K inhibitors include:
-Idelalisib , Copanlisib, Alpelisib
-LY294002?
-Wortmannin: potent PI3K inhibitor, has some associated toxicity.
-Quercetin:
-Curcumin
-Resveratrol
-Epigallocatechin Gallate (EGCG)
Scientific Papers found: Click to Expand⟱
3407- TQ,    Thymoquinone and its pharmacological perspective: A review
- Review, NA, NA
*antiOx↑, TQ has been reported for its antioxidant properties to combat oxidative stress in several literatures
*ROS↓, scavenges the highly reactive oxygen
*GSTs↑, induction of glutathione transferase and quinone reductase
*GSR↑,
*GSH↑, TQ induces the Glutathione production with simultaneous inhibition of superoxide radical production
*RenoP↑, Improved renal function against mercuric chloride, doxorubicin and cisplatin damage have been reported through TQ based induction of Glutathione
*IL1β↓, Decreased the levels of IL-1β, TNFα, MMP-13, cox-2 and PGE(2)
*TNF-α↓,
*MMP13↓,
*COX2↓, reducing COX-2 gene expression, it also inhibited colon cancer cell migration.
*PGE2↓,
*radioP↑, Normal cell protection from ionizing radiation in cancer cell treatment.
Twist↓, TQ treatment have evidenced the inhibition of TWIST1 promoter activity and reduces it expression in cancer cell line leading inhibition of epithelial-mesenchymal transition mediated metastasis
EMT↓,
NF-kB↓, inhibiting the NF-κB expression in breast cancer model of mice
p‑PI3K↓, TQ (20 M) decreased the activation of prostaglandin receptors EP2 and EP4 in LoVo colon cancer cells by reducing p-PI3K, p-Akt, p-GSK3, and -catenin.
p‑Akt↓,
p‑GSK‐3β↓,
DNMT1↓, TQ's anticancer effects are mediated by DNMT1-dependent (dependent DNA methylation mediates) DNA methylation,
HDAC↓, inhibiting histone deacetylase (HDAC)

3397- TQ,    Thymoquinone: A Promising Therapeutic Agent for the Treatment of Colorectal Cancer
- Review, CRC, NA
ChemoSen↑, TQ can be used synergistically with chemotherapeutic agents to enhance their anticancer effects and to influence the expression of signaling pathways and other genes important in cancer development.
*Half-Life↝, These parameters remained associated with an elimination half-life (t1/2) of 63.43 ± 10.69 and 274.61 ± 8.48 min for intravenous and oral administration, respectively
*BioAv↝, TQ is characterized by slow absorption, rapid metabolism, rapid elimination and low physicochemical stability, which limits its pharmaceutical applications
*antiOx↑, Biologically active compounds from Nigella sativa have been shown to have antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic, hepatoprotective, antiproliferative, proapoptotic, antiepileptic and immunomodulatory activities,
*Inflam↓,
*hepatoP↑,
TumCP↓, TQ exerts tumorigenic effects in a variety of ways, including modulation of the epigenetic machinery and effects on proliferation, the cell cycle, apoptosis, angiogenesis, carcinogenesis and metastasis
TumCCA↑,
Apoptosis↑,
angioG↑,
selectivity↑, TQ has low toxicity to normal cells, as confirmed by several studies, including studies on normal mouse kidney cells, normal human lung fibroblasts and normal human intestinal cells.
JNK↑, activation of c-Jun N-terminal kinases (JNK) and p38, as well as the phosphorylation of nuclear factor-?B (NF-?B) and the reduction of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) and phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate 3-kinase (PI3K) activi
p38↑,
p‑NF-kB↑,
ERK↓,
PI3K↓,
PTEN↑, showing higher expression of p21/p27/PTEN/BAX/Cyto-C/Casp-3
Akt↓, TQ has also been shown to downregulate the PI3K/PTEN/Akt/mTOR and WNT/?-catenin pathways, which are critical for tumorigenesis
mTOR↓,
EMT↓, downregulating the epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) transcription factors twist-related protein 1 (TWIST1) and E-cadherin
Twist↓,
E-cadherin↓,
ROS⇅, TQ has been shown to act as an antioxidant at low concentrations. Higher concentrations, however, induce apoptosis of cancer cells through the induction of oxidative stress
*Catalase↑, Thymoquinone upregulates the expression of genes encoding specific enzymes, such as catalase, superoxide dismutase, glutathione reductase, glutathione S-transferase and glutathione peroxidase, whose role is to protect against reactive oxygen species
*SOD↑,
*GSTA1↑,
*GPx↑,
*PGE2↓, TQ has the ability to downregulate NF-?B, interleukin-1?, tumor necrosis factor alpha, cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2,) matrix metalloproteinase 13 (MMP-13), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), the interferon regulatory factor, which are associated with inflammation a
*IL1β↓,
*COX2↓,
*MMP13↓,
MMPs↓, Figure 2
TumMeta↓,
VEGF↓,
STAT3↓, TQ affects the induction of apoptosis in cancer cells by blocking the signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) signaling
BAX↑, upregulation of Bax and inhibition of Bcl-2 and B-cell lymphoma-extra large (Bcl-xl) expression, as well as activated caspase-9, -7 and -3, and induced cleavage of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP).
Bcl-2↑,
Casp9↑,
Casp7↑,
Casp3↑,
cl‑PARP↑,
survivin↓, TQ also attenuated the expression of STAT3 target gene products, such as survivin, c-Myc and cyclin-D1, -D2, and enhanced the expression of cell cycle inhibitory proteins p27 and p21
cMyc↓,
cycD1↓,
p27↑,
P21↑,
GSK‐3β↓, TQ reduces the levels of p-PI3K, p-Akt, p-glycogen synthase kinase 3 (p-GSK3?) and ?-catenin, thereby inhibiting downstream COX-2 expression, which in turn leads to a reduction in PGE2
β-catenin/ZEB1↓,
chemoP↑, results support the potential use of thymoquinone in colorectal cancer chemoprevention, as TQ is effective in protecting and treating the DMH-initiated early phase of colorectal cancer.

2138- TQ,    Thymoquinone has a synergistic effect with PHD inhibitors to ameliorate ischemic brain damage in mice
- in-vivo, Nor, NA
*Hif1a↑, TQ can activate the HIF-1α pathway and its downstream genes such as VEGF, TrkB, and PI3K, which in turn enhance angiogenesis and neurogenesis.
*VEGF↑,
*TrkB↑,
*PI3K↑,
*angioG↑, which in turn enhance angiogenesis and neurogenesis.
*neuroG↑,
*motorD↑, TQ has the same effect as DMOG to activate HIF-1 α and can improve motor dysfunction after ischemic stroke

3559- TQ,    Molecular signaling pathway targeted therapeutic potential of thymoquinone in Alzheimer’s disease
- Review, AD, NA - Review, Var, NA
*antiOx↑, promising potential in the prevention and treatment of AD due to its significant antioxidative, anti-inflammatory,
*Inflam↑, anti-inflammatory activity of TQ is mediated through the Toll-like receptors (TLRs)
*AChE↓, In addition, it shows anticholinesterase activity and prevents α-synuclein induced synaptic damage.
AntiCan↑, NS plant, has been proven to have a wide range of pharmacological interventions, including antidiabetic, anticancer, cardioprotective, retinoprotective, renoprotective, neuroprotective, hepatoprotective and antihypertensive effects
*cardioP↑,
*RenoP↑,
*neuroP↑,
*hepatoP↑,
TumCG↓, potential ability to inhibit tumor growth by stimulating apoptosis as well as by suppression of the P13K/Akt pathways, cell cycle arrest and by inhibition of angiogenesis
Apoptosis↑,
PI3K↓,
Akt↑,
TumCCA↑,
angioG↓,
*NF-kB↓, TQ inhibits nuclear translocation of NF-kB which subsequently blocks the production of NF-kB mediated neuroinflammatory cytokines
*TLR2↓, TQ administration at different doses (10, 20, 40 mg/kg) significantly down-regulated the mRNA expression of TLR-2, TLR-4, MyD88, TRIF and their downstream effectors Interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF-3)
*TLR4↓,
*MyD88↓,
*TRIF↓,
*IRF3↓,
*IL1β↓, TQ also inhibits LPS induced pro-inflammatory cytokine release like IL-1B, IL-6 and IL-12 p40/70 via its interaction with NF-kB
*IL6↓,
*IL12↓,
*NRF2↑, Nuclear erythroid-2 related factor/antioxidant response element (Nrf 2/ARE) being an upstream signaling pathway of NF-kB signaling pathway, its activation by TQ
*COX2↓, TQ also inhibits the expression of all genes regulated by NF-kB, i.e., COX-2, VEGF, MMP-9, c-Myc, and cyclin D1 which distinctively lowers NF-kB activation making it a potentially effective inhibitor of inflammation, proliferation and invasion
*VEGF↓,
*MMP9↓,
*cMyc↓,
*cycD1↓,
*TumCP↓,
*TumCI↓,
*MDA↓, it prevents the rise of malondialdehyde (MDA), transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β), c-reactive protein, IL1-β, caspase-3 and concomitantly upregulates glutathione (GSH), cytochrome c oxidase, and IL-10 levels [92].
*TGF-β↓,
*CRP↓,
*Casp3↓,
*GSH↑,
*IL10↑,
*iNOS↑, decline of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) protein expression
*lipid-P↓, TQ prominently mitigated hippocampal lipid peroxidation and improved SOD activity
*SOD↑,
*H2O2↓, TQ is a strong hydrogen peroxide, hydroxyl scavenger and lipid peroxidation inhibitor
*ROS↓, TQ (0.1 and 1 μM) ensured the inhibition of free radical generation, lowering of the release of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)
*LDH↓,
*Catalase↑, upsurge the levels of GSH, SOD, catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPX)
*GPx↑,
*AChE↓, TQ exhibited the highest AChEI activity of 53.7 g/mL in which NS extract overall exhibited 84.7 g/mL, which suggests a significant AChE inhibition.
*cognitive↑, Most prominently, TQ has been found to regulate neurite maintenance for cognitive benefits by phosphorylating and thereby activating the MAPK protein, particularly the JNK proteins for embryogenesis and also lower the expression levels of BAX
*MAPK↑,
*JNK↑,
*BAX↓,
*memory↑, TQ portrays its potential of spatial memory enhancement by reversing the conditions as observed by MWM task
*Aβ↓, TQ thus, has been shown to ameliorate the Aβ accumulation
*MMP↑, improving the cellular activity, inhibiting mitochondrial membrane depolarization and suppressing ROS

3431- TQ,    PI3K-AKT Pathway Modulation by Thymoquinone Limits Tumor Growth and Glycolytic Metabolism in Colorectal Cancer
- in-vitro, CRC, HCT116 - in-vitro, CRC, SW48
Glycolysis↓, we provide evidence that thymoquinone inhibits glycolytic metabolism (Warburg effect) in colorectal cancer cell lines.
Warburg↓,
HK2↓, was due, at least in part, to the inhibition of the rate-limiting glycolytic enzyme, Hexokinase 2 (HK2),
ATP↓, such reduction in glucose fermentation capacity also led to a significant reduction in overall ATP production as well as maintaining the redox state (NADPH production) of these cells
NADPH↓, showed a significant reduction in glucose fermentation, ATP and NADPH production rates
PI3K↓, reduction in HK2 levels upon TQ treatment coincided with significant inhibition in PI3K-AKT activation
Akt↓,
TumCP↓, Thymoquinone Inhibits Cell Migration and Invasion via Modulating Glucose Metabolic Reprogramming
E-cadherin↑, TQ was able to induce E-cadherin while inhibiting N-cadherin expression
N-cadherin↓,
Hif1a↓, TQ is reported to induce cell death in renal cell carcinoma [81] and pancreatic cancers [82] via inhibiting HIF1α and pyruvate kinase M2 (PKM2)-mediated glycolysis
PKM2↓,
GlucoseCon↓, TQ treatment inhibited the glucose uptake and subsequent lactate production in HCT116 and SW480 cells
lactateProd↓,
EMT↓, TQ inhibits cell proliferation, clonogenicity and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in CRC cells (HCT116 and SW480)

3427- TQ,    Chemopreventive and Anticancer Effects of Thymoquinone: Cellular and Molecular Targets
ROS⇅, It appears that the cellular and/or physiological context(s) determines whether TQ acts as a pro-oxidant or an anti-ox- idant in vivo
Fas↑, Figure 2, cell death
DR5↑,
TRAIL↑,
Casp3↑,
Casp8↑,
Casp9↑,
P53↑,
mTOR↓,
Bcl-2↓,
BID↓,
CXCR4↓,
JNK↑,
p38↑,
MAPK↑,
LC3II↑,
ATG7↑,
Beclin-1↑,
AMPK↑,
PPARγ↑, cell survival
eIF2α↓,
P70S6K↓,
VEGF↓,
ERK↓,
NF-kB↓,
XIAP↓,
survivin↓,
p65↓,
DLC1↑, epigenetic
FOXO↑,
TET2↑,
CYP1B1↑,
UHRF1↓,
DNMT1↓,
HDAC1↓,
IL2↑, inflammation
IL1↓,
IL6↓,
IL10↓,
IL12↓,
TNF-α↓,
iNOS↓,
COX2↓,
5LO↓,
AP-1↓,
PI3K↓, invastion
Akt↓,
cMET↓,
VEGFR2↓,
CXCL1↓,
ITGA5↓,
Wnt↓,
β-catenin/ZEB1↓,
GSK‐3β↓,
Myc↓,
cycD1↓,
N-cadherin↓,
Snail↓,
Slug↓,
Vim↓,
Twist↓,
Zeb1↓,
MMP2↓,
MMP7↓,
MMP9↓,
JAK2↓, cell proliferiation
STAT3↓,
NOTCH↓,
cycA1↓,
CDK2↓,
CDK4↓,
CDK6↓,
CDC2↓,
CDC25↓,
Mcl-1↓,
E2Fs↓,
p16↑,
p27↑,
P21↑,
ChemoSen↑, Such chemo-potentiating effects of TQ in different cancer cells have been observed with 5-fluorouracil in gastric cancer and colorectal cancer models

3425- TQ,    Advances in research on the relationship between thymoquinone and pancreatic cancer
Apoptosis↑, TQ can inhibit cell proliferation, promote cancer cell apoptosis, inhibit cell invasion and metastasis, enhance chemotherapeutic sensitivity, inhibit angiogenesis, and exert anti-inflammatory effects.
TumCP↓,
TumCI↓,
TumMeta↓,
ChemoSen↑,
angioG↓,
Inflam↓,
NF-kB↓, These anticancer effects predominantly involve the nuclear factor (NF)-κB, phosphoinositide 3 kinase (PI3K)/Akt, Notch, transforming growth factor (TGF)-β, c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK)
PI3K↓,
Akt↓,
TGF-β↓,
Jun↓,
p38↑, and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathways as well as the regulation of the cell cycle, matrix metallopeptidase (MMP)-9 expression, and pyruvate kinase isozyme type M2 (PKM2) activity.
MAPK↑, activation of the JNK and p38 MAPK
MMP9↓,
PKM2↓, decrease in PKM2 activity
ROS↑, ROS-mediated activation
JNK↑, activation of the JNK and p38 MAPK
MUC4↓, downregulation of MUC4;
TGF-β↑, TQ led to the activation of the TGF-β pathway and subsequent downregulation of MUC4
Dose↝, Q acts as an antioxidant (free radical scavenger) at low concentrations and as a pro-oxidant at high concentrations.
FAK↓, TQ can inhibit several key molecules such as FAK, Akt, NF-κB, and MMP-9 and that these molecules interact in a cascade to affect the metastasis of pancreatic cancer
NOTCH↓, TQ involved in increasing chemosensitivity consist of blocking the Notch1/PTEN, PI3K/Akt/mTOR, and NF-κB signaling pathways, reducing PKM2 expression, and inhibiting the Warburg effect.
PTEN↑, it also restored the PTEN protein that had been inhibited by GEM
mTOR↓,
Warburg↓, reducing PKM2 expression, and inhibiting the Warburg effect.
XIAP↓,
COX2↓,
Casp9↑,
Ki-67↓,
CD34↓,
VEGF↓,
MCP1↓,
survivin↓,
Cyt‑c↑,
Casp3↑,
H4↑,
HDAC↓,

3422- TQ,    Thymoquinone, as a Novel Therapeutic Candidate of Cancers
- Review, Var, NA
selectivity↑, TQ selectively inhibits the cancer cells’ proliferation in leukemia [9], breast [10], lungs [11], larynx [12], colon [13,14], and osteosarcoma [15]. However, there is no effect against healthy cells
P53↑, It also re-expressed tumor suppressor genes (TSG), such as p53 and Phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) in lung cancer
PTEN↑,
NF-kB↓, antitumor properties by regulating different targets, such as nuclear factor kappa B (NF-Kb), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ), and c-Myc [1], which resulted in caspases protein activation
PPARγ↓,
cMyc↓,
Casp↑,
*BioAv↓, Due to hydrophobicity, there are limitations in the bioavailability and drug formation of TQ.
BioAv↝, TQ is sensitive to light; a short period of exposure results in severe degradation, regardless of the solution’s acidity and solvent type [27]. It is also unstable in alkaline solutions because TQ’s stability decreases with rising pH
eff↑, Encapsulating TQ with CS improves the uptake and bioavailability of TQ but has low encapsulation efficiency (35%)
survivin↓, TQ showed antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic potency on breast cancer through the suppression of anti-apoptotic proteins, such as survivin, Bcl-xL, and Bcl-2
Bcl-xL↓,
Bcl-2↓,
Akt↓, treating doxorubicin-resistant MCF-7/DOX cells with TQ inhibited Akt and Bcl2 phosphorylation and increased the expression of PTEN and apoptotic regulators such as Bax, cleaved PARP, cleaved caspases, p53, and p21 [
BAX↑,
cl‑PARP↑,
CXCR4↓, inhibited metastasis with significant inhibition of chemokine receptor Type 4 (CXCR4), which is considered a poor prognosis indicator, matrix metallopeptidase 9 (MMP9), vascular endothelial growth factor Receptor 2 (VEGFR2), Ki67, and COX2
MMP9↓,
VEGFR2↓,
Ki-67↓,
COX2↓,
JAK2↓, TQ at 25, 50 and 75 µM inhibited JAK2 and c-Src activity and induced apoptosis by inhibiting the phosphorylation of STAT3 and STAT3 downstream genes, such as Bcl-2, cyclin D, survivin, and VEGF, and upregulating caspases-3, caspases-7, and caspases-9
cSrc↓,
Apoptosis↑,
p‑STAT3↓,
cycD1↓,
Casp3↑,
Casp7↑,
Casp9↑,
N-cadherin↓, downregulated the mesenchymal genes expression N-cadherin, vimentin, and TWIST, while upregulating epithelial genes like E-cadherin and cytokeratin-19.
Vim↓,
Twist↓,
E-cadherin↑,
ChemoSen↑, The combined treatment of 5 μM TQ and 2 μg/mL cisplatin was more effective in cancer growth and progression than either agent alone in a xenograft tumor mouse model.
eff↑, TQ–artemisinin hybrid therapy (2.6 μM) showed an enhanced ROS generation level and concomitant DNA damage induction in human colon cancer cells, while not affecting nonmalignant colon epithelial at 100 μM
EMT↓, TQ inhibits the survival signaling pathways to reduce carcinogenesis progress rate, and decreases cancer metastasis through regulation of epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT).
ROS↑, Apoptosis is induced by TQ in cancer cells through producing ROS, demethylating and re-expressing the TSG
DNMT1↓, inhibits DNMT1, figure 2
eff↑, TQ–vitamin D3 combination significantly reduced pro-cancerous molecules (Wnt, β-catenin, NF-κB, COX-2, iNOS, VEGF and HSP-90) a
EZH2↓, reduced angiogenesis by downregulating significant angiogenic genes such as versican (VCAN), the growth factor receptor-binding protein 2 (Grb2), and enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2), which participates in histone methylatio
hepatoP↑, Moreover, TQ improved liver function as well as reduced hepatocellular carcinoma progression
Zeb1↓, TQ decreases the Twist1 and Zeb1 promoter activities,
RadioS↑, TQ combined with radiation inhibited proliferation and induced apoptosis more than a TQ–cisplatin combination against SCC25 and CAL27 cell lines
HDAC↓, TQ has inhibited the histone deacetylase (HDAC) enzyme and reduced its total activity.
HDAC1↓, as well as decreasing the expression of HDAC1, HDAC2, and HDAC3 by 40–60%
HDAC2↓,
HDAC3↓,
*NAD↑, In non-cancer cells, TQ can increase cellular NAD+
*SIRT1↑, An increase in the levels of intracellular NAD+ led to the activation of the SIRT1-dependent metabolic pathways
SIRT1↓, On the other hand, TQ induced apoptosis by downregulating SIRT1 and upregulating p73 in the T cell leukemia Jurkat cell line
*Inflam↓, TQ treatment of male Sprague–Dawley rats has reduced the inflammatory markers (CRP, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β) and anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-10 and IL-4) triggered by sodium nitrite
*CRP↓,
*TNF-α↓,
*IL6↓,
*IL1β↓,
*eff↑, The TQ–piperin combination has also decreased the oxidative damage triggered by microcystin in liver tissue and reduced malondialdehyde (MDA) and NO, while inducing glutathione (GSH) levels and superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathi
*MDA↓,
*NO↓,
*GSH↑,
*SOD↑,
*Catalase↑,
*GPx↑,
PI3K↓, repressing the activation of vital pathways, such as JAK/STAT and PI3K/AKT/mTOR.
mTOR↓,

2084- TQ,    Thymoquinone, as an anticancer molecule: from basic research to clinical investigation
- Review, Var, NA
*ROS↓, An interesting study reported that thymoquinone is actually a potent apoptosis inducer in cancer cells, but it exerts antiapoptotic effect through attenuating oxidative stress in other types of cell injury
*chemoP↑, antioxidant activity of thymoquinone is responsible for its chemopreventive activities
ROS↑, other studies reported thymoquinone induce apoptosis in cancer cells by exerting oxidative damage
ROS⇅, Another hypothesis states that thymoquinone acts as an antioxidant at lower concentrations and a prooxidant at higher concentrations
MUC4↓, Torres et al. [17] revealed that thymoquinone down-regulates glycoprotein mucin 4 (MUC4)
selectivity↑, thymoquinone was found to inhibit DNA synthesis, proliferation, and viability of cancerous cells, such as LNCaP, C4-B, DU145, and PC-3, but not noncancerous BPH-1 prostate epithelial cells [20].
AR↓, Down-regulation of androgen receptor (AR) and cell proliferation regulator E2F-1 was indicated as the mechanism behind thymoquinone’s action in prostate cancer
cycD1↓, expression of STAT3-regulated gene products, such as cyclin D1, Bcl-2, Bcl-xL, survivin, Mcl-1 and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), was inhibited by thymoquinone, which ultimately increased apoptosis and killed cancer cells
Bcl-2↓,
Bcl-xL↓,
survivin↓,
Mcl-1↓,
VEGF↓,
cl‑PARP↑, induction of the cleavage of poly-(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP
ROS↑, In ALL cell line CEM-ss, thymoquinone treatment generated reactive oxygen species (ROS) and HSP70
HSP70/HSPA5↑,
P53↑, thymoquinone can induce apoptosis in MCF-7 breast cancer cells via the up-regulation of p53 expression
miR-34a↑, Thymoquinone significantly increased the expression of miR-34a via p53, and down-regulated Rac1 expression
Rac1↓,
TumCCA↑, In hepatic carcinoma, thymoquinone induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis by repressing the Notch signaling pathway
NOTCH↓,
NF-kB↓, Evidence revealed that thymoquinone suppresses tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α)-induced NF-kappa B (NF-κB) activation
IκB↓, consequently inhibits the activation of I kappa B alpha (I-κBα) kinase, I-κBα phosphorylation, I-κBα degradation, p65 phosphorylation
p‑p65↓,
IAP1↓, down-regulated the expression of NF-κB -regulated antiapoptotic gene products, like IAP1, IAP2, XIAP Bcl-2, Bcl-xL;
IAP2↑,
XIAP↓,
TNF-α↓, It also inhibited monocyte chemo-attractant protein-1 (MCP-1), TNF-α, interleukin (IL)-1β and COX-2, ultimately reducing the NF-κB activation in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma cells
COX2↓,
Inflam↓, indicating its role as an inhibitor of proinflammatory pathways
α-tubulin↓, Without affecting the tubulin levels in normal human fibroblast, thymoquinone induces degradation of α and β tubulin proteins in human astrocytoma U87 cells and in T lymphoblastic leukaemia Jurkat cells, and thus exerts anticancer activity
Twist↓, thymoquinone treatment inhibits TWIST1 promoter activity and decreases its expression in breast cancer cell lines; leading to the inhibition of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)
EMT↓,
mTOR↓, thymoquinone also attenuated mTOR activity, and inhibited PI3K/Akt signaling in bladder cancer
PI3K↓,
Akt↓,
BioAv↓, Thymoquinone is chemically hydrophobic, which causes its poor solubility, and thus bioavailability. bioavailability of thymoquinone was reported ~58% with a lag time of ~23 min
ChemoSen↑, Some studies revealed that thymoquinone in combination with other chemotherapeutic drugs can show better anticancer activities
BioAv↑, Thymoquinone-loaded liposomes (TQ-LP) and thymoquinone loaded in liposomes modified with Triton X-100 (XLP) with diameters of about 100 nm were found to maintain stability, improve bioavailability and maintain thymoquinone’s anticancer activity
PTEN↑, Thymoquinone also induces apoptosis by up-regulating PTEN
chemoP↑, A recent study showed that thymoquinone can potentiate the chemopreventive effect of vitamin D during the initiation phase of colon cancer in rat model
RadioS↑, thymoquinone also mediates radiosensitization and cancer chemo-radiotherapy
*Half-Life↝, Thymoquinone-loaded nanostructured lipid carrier (TQ-NLC) has been developed to improve its bioavailability (elimination half-life ~5 hours)
*BioAv↝, calculated absolute bioavailability of thymoquinone was reported ~58% with a lag time of ~23 min by Alkharfy et al.

1935- TQ,    Potential anticancer properties and mechanisms of thymoquinone in osteosarcoma and bone metastasis
- Review, OS, NA
Apoptosis↑, Nigella sativa, has received considerable attention in cancer treatment owing to its distinctive properties, including apoptosis induction, cell cycle arrest, angiogenesis and metastasis inhibition, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation
TumCCA↑,
angioG↓,
TumMeta↓,
ROS↑,
P53↑, TQ upregulated the expression of p53 in a time-dependent manner, promoting apoptosis in MCF-7
Twist↓, TQ to BT 549 cell lines (breast cancer cells) in a dose-dependent fashion reduced the transcription activity of TWIST1, one of the promotors of endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT)
E-cadherin↑, TQ engagement increased the expression of E-cadherin and decreased the expression of N-cadherin
N-cadherin↓,
NF-kB↓, fig 1
IL8↓,
XIAP↓,
Bcl-2↓,
STAT3↓,
MAPK↓,
PI3K↓,
Akt↓,
ERK↓,
MMP2↓,
MMP9↓,
*ROS↓, prevent cancer formation
HO-1↑, Moreover, TQ could stunt the growth of HCC cell lines through the generation of ROS, heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1)
selectivity↑, application of phytochemicals such as TQ is a promising strategy since these compounds show less toxicity against normal cells.
TumCG↓, Despite inhibiting the growth and viability of different cancer types, TQ has no adverse effects on healthy cells

1019- TQ,    Thymoquinone suppresses migration of LoVo human colon cancer cells by reducing prostaglandin E2 induced COX-2 activation
- vitro+vivo, CRC, LoVo
TumCP↓, 20 μmol/L TQ significantly reduced human LoVo colon cancer cell proliferation
p‑PI3K↓,
p‑Akt↓,
p‑GSK‐3β↓,
β-catenin/ZEB1↓,
COX2↓,
PGE2↓,
EP2↓,
EP4↓,

2127- TQ,    Therapeutic Potential of Thymoquinone in Glioblastoma Treatment: Targeting Major Gliomagenesis Signaling Pathways
- Review, GBM, NA
chemoP↑, TQ can specifically sensitize tumor cells towards conventional cancer treatments and minimize therapy-associated toxic effects in normal cells
ChemoSen↑,
BioAv↑, TQ adds another advantage in overcoming blood-brain barrier
PTEN↑, TQ upregulates PTEN signaling [72, 73], interferes with PI3K/Akt signaling and promotes G(1) arrest, downregulates PI3K/Akt
PI3K↓,
Akt↓,
TumCCA↓,
NF-kB↓, and NF-κB and their regulated gene products, such as p-AKT, p65, XIAP, Bcl-2, COX-2, and VEGF, and attenuates mTOR activity
p‑Akt↓,
p65↓,
XIAP↓,
Bcl-2↓,
COX2↓,
VEGF↓,
mTOR↓,
RAS↓, Studies in colorectal cancer have demonstrated that TQ inhibits the Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK signaling
Raf↓,
MEK↓,
ERK↓,
MMP2↓, Multiple studies have reported that TQ downregulates FAC and reduces the secretion of MMP-2 and MMP-9 and thereby reduces GBM cells migration, adhesion, and invasion
MMP9↓,
TumCMig↓,
TumCI↓,
Casp↑, caspase activation and PARP cleavage
cl‑PARP↑,
ROS⇅, TQ is hypothesized to act as an antoxidant at lower concentrations and a prooxidant at higher concentrations depending on its environment [89]
ROS↑, In tumor cells specifically, TQ generates ROS production that leads to reduced expression of prosurvival genes, loss of mitochondrial potential,
MMP↓,
eff↑, elevated level of ROS generation and simultaneous DNA damage when treated with a combination of TQ and artemisinin
Telomerase↓, inhibition of telomerase by TQ through the formation of G-quadruplex DNA stabilizer, subsequently leads to rapid DNA damage which can eventually induce apoptosis in cancer cells specifically
DNAdam↑,
Apoptosis↑,
STAT3↓, TQ has shown to suppress STAT3 in myeloma, gastric, and colon cancer [86, 171, 172]
RadioS↑, TQ might enhance radiation therapeutic benefit by enhancing the cytotoxic efficacy of radiation through modulation of cell cycle and apoptosis [31]

2106- TQ,    Cancer: Thymoquinone antioxidant/pro-oxidant effect as potential anticancer remedy
- Review, Var, NA
Apoptosis↑, The anticancer power of TQ is accomplished by several aspects; including promotion of apoptosis, arrest of cell cycle and ROS generation.
TumCCA↑,
ROS↑,
*Catalase↑, activation of antioxidant cytoprotective enzymes including, CAT, SOD, glutathione reductase (GR) [80], glutathione-S-transferase (GST) [81] and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) - scavenging H2O2 and superoxide radicals and preventing lipid peroxidation
*SOD↑,
*GR↑,
*GSTA1↓,
*GPx↑,
*H2O2↓,
*ROS↓,
*lipid-P↓,
*HO-1↑, application of TQ to HaCaT (normal) cells promoted the expression of HO-1 in a concentration and time-dependent pattern
p‑Akt↓, TQ could induce ROS which provoked phosphorylation and activation of Akt and AMPK-α
AMPKα↑,
NK cell↑, TQ was outlined to enhance natural killer (NK) cells activity
selectivity↑, Many researchers have noticed that the growth inhibitory potential of TQ is particular to cancer cells
Dose↝, Moreover, TQ has a dual effect in which it can acts as both pro-oxidant and antioxidant in a dose-dependent manner; it acts as an antioxidant at low concentration whereas, at higher concentrations it possess pro-oxidant property
eff↑, Pro-oxidant property of TQ occurs in the presence of metal ions including copper and iron which induce conversion of TQ into semiquinone. This leads to generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) causing DNA damage and induction of cellular apoptosis
GSH↓, TQ for one hour resulted in three-fold increase of ROS while reduced GSH level by 60%
eff↓, pre-treatment of cells with N-acetylcysteine, counteracted TQ-induced ROS production and alleviated growth inhibition
P53↑, TQ provokes apoptosis in MCF-7 cancer cells by up regulating the expression of P53 by time-dependent manner.
p‑STAT3↓, TQ inhibited the phosphorylation of STAT3
PI3K↑, via up regulation of PI3K and MPAK signalling pathway
MAPK↑,
GSK‐3β↑, TQ produced apoptosis in cancer cells and modulated Wnt signaling by activating GSK-3β, translocating β-catenin
ChemoSen↑, Co-administration of TQ and chemotherapeutic agents possess greater cytotoxic influence on cancer cells.
RadioS↑, Treatment of cells with both TQ and IR enhanced the antiproliferative power of TQ as observed by shifting the IC50 values for MCF7 and T47D cells from ∼104 and 37 μM to 72 and 18 μM, respectively.
BioAv↓, TQ cannot be used as the primary therapeutic agent because of its poor bioavailability [177,178] and lower efficacy
NRF2↑, TQ to HaCaT cells promoted the expression of HO-1 in a concentration and time-dependent pattern. This was achieved via increasing stabilization of Nrf2


* indicates research on normal cells as opposed to diseased cells
Total Research Paper Matches: 13

Results for Effect on Cancer/Diseased Cells:
5LO↓,1,   Akt↓,8,   Akt↑,1,   p‑Akt↓,4,   AMPK↑,1,   AMPKα↑,1,   angioG↓,3,   angioG↑,1,   AntiCan↑,1,   AP-1↓,1,   Apoptosis↑,7,   AR↓,1,   ATG7↑,1,   ATP↓,1,   BAX↑,2,   Bcl-2↓,5,   Bcl-2↑,1,   Bcl-xL↓,2,   Beclin-1↑,1,   BID↓,1,   BioAv↓,2,   BioAv↑,2,   BioAv↝,1,   Casp↑,2,   Casp3↑,4,   Casp7↑,2,   Casp8↑,1,   Casp9↑,4,   CD34↓,1,   CDC2↓,1,   CDC25↓,1,   CDK2↓,1,   CDK4↓,1,   CDK6↓,1,   chemoP↑,3,   ChemoSen↑,7,   cMET↓,1,   cMyc↓,2,   COX2↓,6,   cSrc↓,1,   CXCL1↓,1,   CXCR4↓,2,   cycA1↓,1,   cycD1↓,4,   CYP1B1↑,1,   Cyt‑c↑,1,   DLC1↑,1,   DNAdam↑,1,   DNMT1↓,3,   Dose↝,2,   DR5↑,1,   E-cadherin↓,1,   E-cadherin↑,3,   E2Fs↓,1,   eff↓,1,   eff↑,5,   eIF2α↓,1,   EMT↓,5,   EP2↓,1,   EP4↓,1,   ERK↓,4,   EZH2↓,1,   FAK↓,1,   Fas↑,1,   FOXO↑,1,   GlucoseCon↓,1,   Glycolysis↓,1,   GSH↓,1,   GSK‐3β↓,2,   GSK‐3β↑,1,   p‑GSK‐3β↓,2,   H4↑,1,   HDAC↓,3,   HDAC1↓,2,   HDAC2↓,1,   HDAC3↓,1,   hepatoP↑,1,   Hif1a↓,1,   HK2↓,1,   HO-1↑,1,   HSP70/HSPA5↑,1,   IAP1↓,1,   IAP2↑,1,   IL1↓,1,   IL10↓,1,   IL12↓,1,   IL2↑,1,   IL6↓,1,   IL8↓,1,   Inflam↓,2,   iNOS↓,1,   ITGA5↓,1,   IκB↓,1,   JAK2↓,2,   JNK↑,3,   Jun↓,1,   Ki-67↓,2,   lactateProd↓,1,   LC3II↑,1,   MAPK↓,1,   MAPK↑,3,   Mcl-1↓,2,   MCP1↓,1,   MEK↓,1,   miR-34a↑,1,   MMP↓,1,   MMP2↓,3,   MMP7↓,1,   MMP9↓,5,   MMPs↓,1,   mTOR↓,6,   MUC4↓,2,   Myc↓,1,   N-cadherin↓,4,   NADPH↓,1,   NF-kB↓,7,   p‑NF-kB↑,1,   NK cell↑,1,   NOTCH↓,3,   NRF2↑,1,   p16↑,1,   P21↑,2,   p27↑,2,   p38↑,3,   P53↑,5,   p65↓,2,   p‑p65↓,1,   P70S6K↓,1,   cl‑PARP↑,4,   PGE2↓,1,   PI3K↓,9,   PI3K↑,1,   p‑PI3K↓,2,   PKM2↓,2,   PPARγ↓,1,   PPARγ↑,1,   PTEN↑,5,   Rac1↓,1,   RadioS↑,4,   Raf↓,1,   RAS↓,1,   ROS↑,7,   ROS⇅,4,   selectivity↑,5,   SIRT1↓,1,   Slug↓,1,   Snail↓,1,   STAT3↓,4,   p‑STAT3↓,2,   survivin↓,5,   Telomerase↓,1,   TET2↑,1,   TGF-β↓,1,   TGF-β↑,1,   TNF-α↓,2,   TRAIL↑,1,   TumCCA↓,1,   TumCCA↑,5,   TumCG↓,2,   TumCI↓,2,   TumCMig↓,1,   TumCP↓,4,   TumMeta↓,3,   Twist↓,6,   UHRF1↓,1,   VEGF↓,5,   VEGFR2↓,2,   Vim↓,2,   Warburg↓,2,   Wnt↓,1,   XIAP↓,5,   Zeb1↓,2,   α-tubulin↓,1,   β-catenin/ZEB1↓,3,  
Total Targets: 174

Results for Effect on Normal Cells:
AChE↓,2,   angioG↑,1,   antiOx↑,3,   Aβ↓,1,   BAX↓,1,   BioAv↓,1,   BioAv↝,2,   cardioP↑,1,   Casp3↓,1,   Catalase↑,4,   chemoP↑,1,   cMyc↓,1,   cognitive↑,1,   COX2↓,3,   CRP↓,2,   cycD1↓,1,   eff↑,1,   GPx↑,4,   GR↑,1,   GSH↑,3,   GSR↑,1,   GSTA1↓,1,   GSTA1↑,1,   GSTs↑,1,   H2O2↓,2,   Half-Life↝,2,   hepatoP↑,2,   Hif1a↑,1,   HO-1↑,1,   IL10↑,1,   IL12↓,1,   IL1β↓,4,   IL6↓,2,   Inflam↓,2,   Inflam↑,1,   iNOS↑,1,   IRF3↓,1,   JNK↑,1,   LDH↓,1,   lipid-P↓,2,   MAPK↑,1,   MDA↓,2,   memory↑,1,   MMP↑,1,   MMP13↓,2,   MMP9↓,1,   motorD↑,1,   MyD88↓,1,   NAD↑,1,   neuroG↑,1,   neuroP↑,1,   NF-kB↓,1,   NO↓,1,   NRF2↑,1,   PGE2↓,2,   PI3K↑,1,   radioP↑,1,   RenoP↑,2,   ROS↓,5,   SIRT1↑,1,   SOD↑,4,   TGF-β↓,1,   TLR2↓,1,   TLR4↓,1,   TNF-α↓,2,   TRIF↓,1,   TrkB↑,1,   TumCI↓,1,   TumCP↓,1,   VEGF↓,1,   VEGF↑,1,  
Total Targets: 71

Scientific Paper Hit Count for: PI3K, Phosphatidylinositide-3-Kinases
13 Thymoquinone
Filter Conditions: Pro/AntiFlg:%  IllCat:%  CanType:%  Cells:%  prod#:162  Target#:252  State#:%  Dir#:%
  wNotes=on  sortOrder:rid,rpid

 

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