Sulfasalazine / Ferroptosis Cancer Research Results

SAS, Sulfasalazine: Click to Expand ⟱
Features:
Sulfasalazine is primarily known as an anti-inflammatory and disease‐modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD), used for conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel diseases (e.g., ulcerative colitis).

-Inhibit the nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) pathway.
-Sulfasalazine has been noted to interfere with the cystine/glutamate antiporter (system x_c⁻), which can reduce glutathione levels in cancer cells, potentially making them more susceptible to oxidative stress.

-Ability to inhibit anti-oxidant production (for ProOxidant effect).

Rank Pathway / Target Axis Direction Primary Effect Notes / Cancer Relevance Ref
1 System xC− (xCT/SLC7A11 cystine–glutamate antiporter) ↓ cystine uptake Limits cystine supply Sulfasalazine is used as an xCT inhibitor; blocking cystine uptake is the core upstream action in cancer models (ref)
2 Glutathione biosynthesis / GSH pool ↓ GSH Loss of redox buffering In glioma cells, cystine uptake blockade by sulfasalazine leads to glutathione depletion (ref)
3 ROS accumulation ↑ ROS Oxidative stress amplification Glioma study: sulfasalazine increases ROS after GSH depletion (mechanistic sequence shown) (ref)
4 DNA damage (oxidative/genotoxic stress) ↑ DNA damage Checkpoint/death signaling Glioma study: sulfasalazine causes DNA damage as part of the ROS-driven cytotoxic cascade (ref)
5 Radiosensitization (oxidative vulnerability) ↑ radiation sensitivity Enhances radiotherapy effect Melanoma model: sulfasalazine decreases glutathione and synergistically enhances X-irradiation cytotoxicity (ref)
6 Ferroptosis (system xC− → GSH/GPX4 vulnerability) ↑ ferroptotic death Iron-dependent oxidative death Paclitaxel-resistant uterine serous carcinoma model: sulfasalazine (xCT inhibitor) induces ferroptotic cell death signatures (ref)
7 Mitochondrial apoptosis (caspase pathway) ↑ apoptosis Programmed cell death Osteosarcoma work: sulfasalazine blocks system xC− and induces cell death consistent with ferroptosis/apoptosis programs (apoptosis markers reported in the paper’s mechanism set) (ref)
8 NF-κB activation (IκBα degradation / IKK activity) ↓ NF-κB activation Reduced pro-survival/inflammatory transcription Mechanistic paper shows sulfasalazine blocks NF-κB activation by inhibiting IκBα degradation via IKK inhibition (ref)
9 NF-κB nuclear translocation ↓ nuclear NF-κB Transcriptional shutdown Colon cancer cells: sulfasalazine prevents TNFα-induced NF-κB nuclear translocation and NF-κB–dependent transcription (ref)
10 Chemo-sensitization via xCT inhibition ↑ chemo sensitivity (context-dependent) Combination benefit Mechanistic rationale: xCT inhibition lowers GSH and oxidative defense, increasing sensitivity to cytotoxic stress (glioma + radiation shown explicitly) (ref)
11 Tumor growth suppression in vivo (xCT-targeted stress) ↓ tumor growth Anti-tumor efficacy Glioma xenograft model: sulfasalazine plus radiosurgery improves survival compared to control/monotherapy (ref)
12 Resistance axis: xCT-high / antioxidant-high tumors ↑ vulnerability when xCT-high Targeted susceptibility Endometrial/USC model: sulfasalazine shows stronger cytotoxicity in resistant (stress-adapted) cells consistent with xCT dependence (ref)


Ferroptosis, Ferroptosis: Click to Expand ⟱
Source:
Type: type of cell death
Type of programmed cell death dependent on iron.
Ferroptosis is a form of regulated cell death characterized by the accumulation of lipid peroxides to lethal levels. It is distinct from other forms of cell death, such as apoptosis, necrosis, and autophagy. The process of ferroptosis is heavily dependent on iron metabolism and reactive oxygen species (ROS).
The accumulation of lipid peroxides is a hallmark of ferroptosis. This can occur when the antioxidant defenses, such as glutathione and selenoproteins, are overwhelmed or inhibited. Many cancer cells upregulate GPX4 to evade ferroptosis, making it a potential target for therapy. It has been described that GPX4, xCT and ACSL-4 are the main targets in the regulation of ferroptosis.
Scientific Papers found: Click to Expand⟱
5046- erastin,  SAS,    The structure of erastin-bound xCT–4F2hc complex reveals molecular mechanisms underlying erastin-induced ferroptosis
- Study, Var, NA
xCT↓, ROS↑, TumCG↓, GSH↓, Ferroptosis↑,
5139- SAS,    Sulfasalazine induces ferroptosis in osteosarcomas by regulating Nrf2/SLC7A11/GPX4 signaling axis
- in-vitro, OS, MG63 - in-vitro, OS, U2OS
*Inflam↓, TumCP↓, TumCMig↓, Apoptosis↑, Ferroptosis↑, Iron↑, MDA↑, ROS↑, GSH↓, SOD↓, MMP↓, NRF2↓, xCT↓, GPx4↓, FTH1↓,
5044- SAS,    xCT inhibitor sulfasalazine depletes paclitaxel-resistant tumor cells through ferroptosis in uterine serous carcinoma
- in-vitro, Var, NA
xCT↓, Ferroptosis↑, ROS↑, IL1↓, IL2↓, NF-kB↓, GSH↓, TumCG↓, ChemoSen↑,
5039- SAS,    Regulatory network of ferroptosis and autophagy by targeting oxidative stress defense using sulfasalazine in triple-negative breast cancer
- vitro+vivo, BC, NA
xCT↓, ROS↑, GSH↓, Ferroptosis↑, TumCG↓, toxicity↓, lipid-P↑,

Showing Research Papers: 1 to 4 of 4

* indicates research on normal cells as opposed to diseased cells
Total Research Paper Matches: 4

Pathway results for Effect on Cancer / Diseased Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress ⓘ

Ferroptosis↑, 4,   GPx4↓, 1,   GSH↓, 4,   Iron↑, 1,   lipid-P↑, 1,   MDA↑, 1,   NRF2↓, 1,   ROS↑, 4,   SOD↓, 1,   xCT↓, 4,  

Metal & Cofactor Biology ⓘ

FTH1↓, 1,  

Mitochondria & Bioenergetics ⓘ

MMP↓, 1,  

Cell Death ⓘ

Apoptosis↑, 1,   Ferroptosis↑, 4,  

Proliferation, Differentiation & Cell State ⓘ

TumCG↓, 3,  

Migration ⓘ

TumCMig↓, 1,   TumCP↓, 1,  

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling ⓘ

IL1↓, 1,   IL2↓, 1,   NF-kB↓, 1,  

Drug Metabolism & Resistance ⓘ

ChemoSen↑, 1,  

Functional Outcomes ⓘ

toxicity↓, 1,  
Total Targets: 22

Pathway results for Effect on Normal Cells:


Immune & Inflammatory Signaling ⓘ

Inflam↓, 1,  
Total Targets: 1

Scientific Paper Hit Count for: Ferroptosis, Ferroptosis
4 Sulfasalazine
1 erastin
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#:286  Target#:114  State#:%  Dir#:%
  wNotes=0  sortOrder:rid,rpid

 

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