Database Query Results : Betulinic acid, , hepatoP

BetA, Betulinic acid: Click to Expand ⟱
Features:
Betulinic acid "buh-TOO-li-nik acid" is a natural compound with antiretroviral, anti malarial, anti-inflammatory and anticancer properties. It is found in the bark of several plants, such as white birch, ber tree and rosemary, and has a complex mode of action against tumor cells.
-Betulinic acid is a naturally occurring pentacyclic triterpenoid
-vitro concentrations range from 1–100 µM, in vivo studies in rodents have generally used doses from 10–100 mg/kg
Precursor: Betulin, via oxidation at C-28
Lipophilicity: High (poor aqueous solubility)
-half-life reports vary 3-5 hrs?. Reported half-life varies by formulation and species; several studies report multi-hour systemic persistence.
BioAv -hydrophobic molecule with relatively poor water solubility. 
Main Cancer action
-Direct mitochondrial targeting in cancer cells
-Minimal effect on normal cells

Key pathways
-Mitochondrial membrane permeabilization
-ROS-mediated apoptosis
-Caspase-independent death

Chemo relevance: Generally compatible, Not a redox buffer

Pathways:
- often induce ROS production
- ROS↑ related: MMP↓(ΔΨm), ER Stress↑, UPR↑, GRP78↑, Ca+2↑, Cyt‑c↑, Caspases↑, DNA damage↑, cl-PARP↑, HSP↓
- Lowers AntiOxidant defense in Cancer Cells(Often associated with reduced redox buffering capacity in tumor cells (e.g., GSH depletion); NRF2 direction model-dependent.): NRF2↓, SOD↓, GSH↓
- May Raise AntiOxidant defense in Normal Cells: NRF2↑, SOD↑, GSH↑, Catalase↑ Reports suggest relative sparing of normal cells and preservation of antioxidant capacity in some models
- lowers Inflammation : NF-kB↓(typ), COX2↓, p38↓ (context-dependent; often stress-activated), Pro-Inflammatory Cytokines : IL-1β↓, TNF-α↓, IL-6↓, IL-8↓
- inhibit Growth/Metastases : , MMPs↓, MMP2↓, MMP9↓, TIMP2, IGF-1↓, VEGF↓, ROCK1↓, FAK↓, NF-κB↓, TGF-β↓, α-SMA↓, ERK↓
- reactivate genes thereby inhibiting cancer cell growth : P53↑, HSP↓(model-dependent), Sp proteins↓,
- cause Cell cycle arrest : TumCCA↑, cyclin D1↓, CDK2↓, CDK4↓,
- inhibits Migration/Invasion : TumCMig↓, TumCI↓, FAK↓, ERK↓, EMT↓, TOP1↓,
- inhibits glycolysis (secondary to mitochondrial stress) ATP depletion : HIF-1α↓, PKM2↓, cMyc↓, GLUT1↓, LDH↓, LDHA↓, HK2↓, PFKs↓, PDKs↓, HK2↓, ECAR↓, GRP78↑(ER stress), GlucoseCon↓
- inhibits angiogenesis↓ : VEGF↓, HIF-1α↓, EGFR↓,
- inhibits Cancer Stem Cells in some studies : CSC↓, GLi1↓, β-catenin↓, OCT4↓,
- Others: PI3K↓(typ), AKT↓(typ), JAK↓, STAT↓, β-catenin↓, AMPK↓(AMPK is often activated during metabolic stress), ERK↓, JNK,
- Synergies: chemo-sensitization, chemoProtective, RadioSensitizer, Others(review target notes), Neuroprotective, Cognitive, Renoprotection, Hepatoprotective, CardioProtective,
- Selectivity: Cancer Cells vs Normal Cells

Rank Pathway / Axis Cancer Cells Normal Cells TSF Primary Effect Notes / Interpretation
1 Intrinsic apoptosis (mitochondrial-mediated) ↑ mitochondria depolarization; ↑ cytochrome-c; ↑ caspase-9/3 activation ↔ limited activation (higher exposure required) R, G Execution of apoptosis Betulinic acid (BA) is well known to engage the intrinsic apoptotic cascade, typically downstream of redox and signaling perturbations.
2 ROS / redox stress ↑ ROS (P→R) ↔ basal or antioxidant adaptation in some contexts P, R Stress induction Many studies report ROS elevation in tumor cells exposed to BA; the direction and magnitude vary by cell type and exposure.
3 Mitochondrial permeability transition / ΔΨm loss ΔΨm ↓ (R→G) ↔ maintained R, G Mitochondrial failure Often observed as an early event preceding caspase activation in apoptosis studies.
4 PI3K / AKT / mTOR survival axis ↓ PI3K/AKT signaling; ↓ phospho-mTOR ↔ R, G Survival/growth suppression Betulinic acid often downregulates pro-survival kinase signaling, sensitizing cells to apoptosis and cytostasis.
5 NF-κB signaling ↓ NF-κB activity ↔ R, G Pro-survival/inflammatory transcription suppression Reduction in NF-κB activity limits pro-survival gene expression; supports sensitization to stressors.
6 MAPK re-wiring (JNK / ERK / p38) Stress-MAPK shifts; JNK/p38 often ↑; ERK context-dependent ↔ P, R Early stress signaling MAPK responses vary by model, with stress-associated p38/JNK often activated and ERK modulation variable.
7 Cell-cycle checkpoints (p21, p27, cyclins) ↑ p21/p27; ↑ G1/S or G2/M arrest ↔ G Proliferation arrest BA often induces cell-cycle blockade, slowing proliferation before apoptosis commitment.
8 Angiogenic signaling (VEGF & related) ↓ VEGF; anti-angiogenic outputs ↔ G Anti-angiogenic support Typically seen at the level of reduced pro-angiogenic factor expression or secretion in longer-term assays.
9 EMT / invasion / migration programs (MMPs) ↓ MMP2/MMP9; ↓ migration/invasion ↔ G Anti-invasive phenotype Often measured as reduced invasive capacity and decreased expression of EMT markers in later time points.
10 Autophagy modulation ↑ LC3-II; ↑ autophagic flux (model dependent) ↔ G Adaptive clearance / cell fate shift BA can modulate autophagy, which may either sensitize cells to death pathways or reflect adaptive stress responses.

Time-Scale Flag (TSF): P / R / G

  • P: 0–30 min (primary/physical-chemical effects; rapid kinase/redox signaling)
  • R: 30 min–3 hr (acute redox and stress-response activation)
  • G: >3 hr (gene-regulatory adaptation and phenotypic outcomes)
hepatoP, L,hepatoprotective: Click to Expand ⟱
Source:
Type:
Hepatoprotective is the ability of a chemical substance to prevent damage to the liver.

Grapefruit:
-hepatoprotective potential has emerged from the study of naringenin and naringin.
Blueberries/cranberries:
-proanthocyanidins
Grape:
Nopal (Cactus pear) and tuna (Cactus pear fruit) “Opuntia ficus-indica”:
Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla or Chamomilla recutita):
Silymarin (Silybum marianum):
Blue green algae spirulina :
Propolis (bee glue):

POLYSACCHARIDES
β-glucans
Scientific Papers found: Click to Expand⟱
2760- BetA,    A Review on Preparation of Betulinic Acid and Its Biological Activities
- Review, Var, NA - Review, Stroke, NA
AntiTum↑, BA is considered a future promising antitumor compound
Cyt‑c↑, BA stimulated mitochondria to release cytochrome c and Smac and cause further apoptosis reactions
Smad1↑,
Sepsis↓, Administration of 10 and 30 mg/kg of BA significantly improved survival against sepsis and attenuated lung injury.
NF-kB↓, BA inhibited nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) expression in the lung and decreased levels of cytokine, intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9)
ICAM-1↓,
MCP1↓,
MMP9↓,
COX2↓, In hPBMCs, BA suppressed cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression and prostaglandin E2 (PEG2) production by inhibiting extracellular regulated kinase (ERK) and Akt phosphorylation and thereby modulated the NF-κB signaling pathway
PGE2↓,
ERK↓,
p‑Akt↓,
*ROS↓, BA significantly decreased the mortality of mice against endotoxin shock and inhibited the production of PEG2 in two of the most susceptible organs, lungs and livers [80]. Moreover, BA reduced reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation
*LDH↓, and the release of lactate dehydrogenase
*hepatoP↑, hepatoprotective effect of BA from Tecomella undulata.
*SOD↑, Pretreatment of BA prevented the depletion of hepatic antioxidants superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT), reduced glutathione (GSH) and ascorbic acid (AA) and decreased the CCl4-induced LPO level
*Catalase↑,
*GSH↑,
*AST↓, A also attenuated the elevation of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) plasma level,
*ALAT↓,
*RenoP↑, BA also exhibits renal-protective effects. Renal fibrosis is an end-stage renal disease symptom that develops from chronic kidney disease (CKD).
*ROS↓, BA protected against this ischemia-reperfusion injury in a mice model by enhancing blood flow and reducing oxidative stress and nitrosative stress
*α-SMA↓, Moreover, BA reduced the expression of α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and collagen-I

2718- BetA,    The anti-cancer effect of betulinic acid in u937 human leukemia cells is mediated through ROS-dependent cell cycle arrest and apoptosis
- in-vitro, AML, U937
TumCCA↑, BA exerted a significant cytotoxic effect on U937 cells through blocking cell cycle arrest at the G2/M phase and inducing apoptosis, and that the intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels increased after treatment with BA.
Apoptosis↑,
i-ROS↑,
cycA1/CCNA1↓, down-regulation of cyclin A and cyclin B1, and up-regulation of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p21WAF1/CIP1 revealed the G2/M phase arrest mechanism of BA.
CycB/CCNB1↓,
P21↑,
Cyt‑c↑, BA induced the cytosolic release of cytochrome c by reducing the mitochondrial membrane potential with an increasing Bax/Bcl-2 expression ratio.
MMP↓,
Bax:Bcl2↑,
Casp9↑, BA also increased the activity of caspase-9 and -3, and subsequent degradation of the poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase.
Casp3↑,
PARP↓,
eff↓, However, quenching of ROS by N-acetyl-cysteine, an ROS scavenger, markedly abolished BA-induced G2/M arrest and apoptosis, indicating that the generation of ROS plays a key role in inhibiting the proliferation of U937 cells by BA treatment.
*antiOx↑, Accumulated evidence demonstrates that BA possesses various biological activities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, and anti-tumor effects
*Inflam↓,
*hepatoP↑,
selectivity↑, BA are complex and depends on the type of cancer cells, without causing toxicity toward normal cells
NF-kB↓, Shen et al. (2019) recently reported that the suppression of the nuclear factor-kappa B pathway increased downstream oxidant effectors, thereby promoting the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in BA-stimulated multiple myeloma cells.
*ROS↓, Although BA is known to have antioxidant activity that blocks the accumulation of ROS due to oxidative stress in normal cells (Cheng et al. 2019;


* indicates research on normal cells as opposed to diseased cells
Total Research Paper Matches: 2

Pathway results for Effect on Cancer / Diseased Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress ⓘ

i-ROS↑, 1,  

Mitochondria & Bioenergetics ⓘ

MMP↓, 1,  

Cell Death ⓘ

p‑Akt↓, 1,   Apoptosis↑, 1,   Bax:Bcl2↑, 1,   Casp3↑, 1,   Casp9↑, 1,   Cyt‑c↑, 2,  

DNA Damage & Repair ⓘ

PARP↓, 1,  

Cell Cycle & Senescence ⓘ

cycA1/CCNA1↓, 1,   CycB/CCNB1↓, 1,   P21↑, 1,   TumCCA↑, 1,  

Proliferation, Differentiation & Cell State ⓘ

ERK↓, 1,  

Migration ⓘ

MMP9↓, 1,   Smad1↑, 1,  

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling ⓘ

COX2↓, 1,   ICAM-1↓, 1,   MCP1↓, 1,   NF-kB↓, 2,   PGE2↓, 1,  

Drug Metabolism & Resistance ⓘ

eff↓, 1,   selectivity↑, 1,  

Functional Outcomes ⓘ

AntiTum↑, 1,  

Infection & Microbiome ⓘ

Sepsis↓, 1,  
Total Targets: 25

Pathway results for Effect on Normal Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress ⓘ

antiOx↑, 1,   Catalase↑, 1,   GSH↑, 1,   ROS↓, 3,   SOD↑, 1,  

Core Metabolism/Glycolysis ⓘ

ALAT↓, 1,   LDH↓, 1,  

Migration ⓘ

α-SMA↓, 1,  

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling ⓘ

Inflam↓, 1,  

Clinical Biomarkers ⓘ

ALAT↓, 1,   AST↓, 1,   LDH↓, 1,  

Functional Outcomes ⓘ

hepatoP↑, 2,   RenoP↑, 1,  
Total Targets: 14

Scientific Paper Hit Count for: hepatoP, L,hepatoprotective
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#:42  Target#:1179  State#:%  Dir#:%
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