Emodin / ROS Cancer Research Results

EMD, Emodin: Click to Expand ⟱
Features:
Organic compound isolated from rhubarb, buckthorn, knotweed. It has laxative, anticancer, antibacterial, antiinflammatory, and antiviral activities, and is used in traditional Chinese medicine.
Emodin, an anthraquinone derivative found in various plants (e.g., rhubarb, Polygonum cuspidatum).

Pathways:
- Generation of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS)
- Upregulation Bax downregulation of Bcl‑2, caspase activation and cyt_c release.
- Induce cell cycle arrest at various checkpoints (commonly G0/G1 or G2/M phases.
- Can inhibit NF‑κB activation
– MAPK Pathways
– PI3K/Akt Pathway
- Metalloproteinases (MMPs)

-ic50 cancer cells 10-50uM, normal cells higher(supports a therapeutic window)

Rank Pathway / Target Axis Direction Label Primary Effect Notes / Cancer Relevance Ref
1 Reactive oxygen species (ROS) ROS Driver Upstream cytotoxic trigger Emodin induces ROS in cancer cells; ROS increase is positioned upstream of mitochondrial dysfunction and death signaling. (ref)
2 Mitochondrial integrity (ΔΨm) ↓ ΔΨm Driver Mitochondrial dysfunction Emodin decreases mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm), consistent with mitochondria-dependent killing. (ref)
3 Intrinsic apoptosis (caspase cascade) ↑ apoptosis (↑ caspases / ↑ PARP cleavage) Driver Execution-phase cell death Emodin activates caspase-dependent apoptosis with mitochondrial involvement in colon cancer models. (ref)
4 AMPK → AKT/mTOR axis ↑ AMPK / ↓ AKT-mTOR signaling Secondary Growth/metabolic suppression NSCLC study reports AMPK activation with inhibition of AKT/mTOR alongside apoptosis and ROS increase (consistent directionality). (ref)
5 NF-κB signaling ↓ NF-κB activation (↓ p65 nuclear translocation; ↓ IκBα phosphorylation/degradation) Secondary Reduced pro-survival/inflammatory transcription Emodin inhibits TNF-α–induced NF-κB activation by blocking IκBα phosphorylation/degradation and p65 nuclear activity. (ref)
6 STAT3 signaling ↓ STAT3 activation (↓ phosphorylation) Secondary Reduced survival/proliferation signaling HCC study shows emodin suppresses STAT3 activation (and discusses upstream kinase modulation), supporting directionality as STAT3↓. (ref)
7 HIF-1α hypoxia program ↓ HIF-1α (↓ biosynthesis; not via transcription/stability) Adaptive Reduced hypoxia tolerance Pancreatic cancer study: emodin decreases HIF-1α by decreasing biosynthesis (explicit mechanism stated). (ref)
8 Aerobic glycolysis (Warburg output) ↓ glycolysis (↓ ECAR / ↓ glycolytic dependence) Phenotypic Metabolic suppression Renal cancer paper reports emodin inhibits aerobic glycolysis (and links killing to a non-apoptotic death mode in that model). (ref)
9 HDAC inhibition (epigenetic enzyme activity) ↓ HDAC activity Secondary Epigenetic modulation Direct biochemical evidence: emodin inhibits HDAC activity in vitro (fast-on/slow-off kinetics reported). (ref)
10 NRF2 / HO-1 antioxidant response ↑ NRF2 / ↑ HO-1 (context-dependent stress response) Adaptive Counter-response to redox stress HCC model reports emodin increases NRF2 and HO-1 expression; interpret as adaptive/compensatory (not necessarily the cytotoxic driver). (ref)


ROS, Reactive Oxygen Species: Click to Expand ⟱
Source: HalifaxProj (inhibit)
Type:
Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are highly reactive molecules that contain oxygen and can lead to oxidative stress in cells. They play a dual role in cancer biology, acting as both promoters and suppressors of cancer.
ROS can cause oxidative damage to DNA, leading to mutations that may contribute to cancer initiation and progression. So normally you want to inhibit ROS to prevent cell mutations.
However excessive ROS can induce apoptosis (programmed cell death) in cancer cells, potentially limiting tumor growth. Chemotherapy typically raises ROS.
-mitochondria is the main source of reactive oxygen species (ROS) (and the ETC is heavily related)

"Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are two electron reduction products of oxygen, including superoxide anion, hydrogen peroxide, hydroxyl radical, lipid peroxides, protein peroxides and peroxides formed in nucleic acids 1. They are maintained in a dynamic balance by a series of reduction-oxidation (redox) reactions in biological systems and act as signaling molecules to drive cellular regulatory pathways."
"During different stages of cancer formation, abnormal ROS levels play paradoxical roles in cell growth and death 8. A physiological concentration of ROS that maintained in equilibrium is necessary for normal cell survival. Ectopic ROS accumulation promotes cell proliferation and consequently induces malignant transformation of normal cells by initiating pathological conversion of physiological signaling networks. Excessive ROS levels lead to cell death by damaging cellular components, including proteins, lipid bilayers, and chromosomes. Therefore, both scavenging abnormally elevated ROS to prevent early neoplasia and facilitating ROS production to specifically kill cancer cells are promising anticancer therapeutic strategies, in spite of their contradictoriness and complexity."
"ROS are the collection of derivatives of molecular oxygen that occur in biology, which can be categorized into two types, free radicals and non-radical species. The non-radical species are hydrogen peroxide (H 2O 2 ), organic hydroperoxides (ROOH), singlet molecular oxygen ( 1 O 2 ), electronically excited carbonyl, ozone (O3 ), hypochlorous acid (HOCl, and hypobromous acid HOBr). Free radical species are super-oxide anion radical (O 2•−), hydroxyl radical (•OH), peroxyl radical (ROO•) and alkoxyl radical (RO•) [130]. Any imbalance of ROS can lead to adverse effects. H2 O 2 and O 2 •− are the main redox signalling agents. The cellular concentration of H2 O 2 is about 10−8 M, which is almost a thousand times more than that of O2 •−".
"Radicals are molecules with an odd number of electrons in the outer shell [393,394]. A pair of radicals can be formed by breaking a chemical bond or electron transfer between two molecules."

Recent investigations have documented that polyphenols with good antioxidant activity may exhibit pro-oxidant activity in the presence of copper ions, which can induce apoptosis in various cancer cell lines but not in normal cells. "We have shown that such cell growth inhibition by polyphenols in cancer cells is reversed by copper-specific sequestering agent neocuproine to a significant extent whereas iron and zinc chelators are relatively ineffective, thus confirming the role of endogenous copper in the cytotoxic action of polyphenols against cancer cells. Therefore, this mechanism of mobilization of endogenous copper." > Ions could be one of the important mechanisms for the cytotoxic action of plant polyphenols against cancer cells and is possibly a common mechanism for all plant polyphenols. In fact, similar results obtained with four different polyphenolic compounds in this study, namely apigenin, luteolin, EGCG, and resveratrol, strengthen this idea.
Interestingly, the normal breast epithelial MCF10A cells have earlier been shown to possess no detectable copper as opposed to breast cancer cells [24], which may explain their resistance to polyphenols apigenin- and luteolin-induced growth inhibition as observed here (Fig. 1). We have earlier proposed [25] that this preferential cytotoxicity of plant polyphenols toward cancer cells is explained by the observation made several years earlier, which showed that copper levels in cancer cells are significantly elevated in various malignancies. Thus, because of higher intracellular copper levels in cancer cells, it may be predicted that the cytotoxic concentrations of polyphenols required would be lower in these cells as compared to normal cells."

Majority of ROS are produced as a by-product of oxidative phosphorylation, high levels of ROS are detected in almost all cancers.
-It is well established that during ER stress, cytosolic calcium released from the ER is taken up by the mitochondrion to stimulate ROS overgeneration and the release of cytochrome c, both of which lead to apoptosis.

Note: Products that may raise ROS can be found using this database, by:
Filtering on the target of ROS, and selecting the Effect Direction of ↑

Targets to raise ROS (to kill cancer cells):
• NADPH oxidases (NOX): NOX enzymes are involved in the production of ROS.
    -Targeting NOX enzymes can increase ROS levels and induce cancer cell death.
    -eNOX2 inhibition leads to a high NADH/NAD⁺ ratio which can lead to increased ROS
• Mitochondrial complex I: Inhibiting can increase ROS production
• P53: Activating p53 can increase ROS levels(by inducing the expression of pro-oxidant genes)
Nrf2 inhibition: regulates the expression of antioxidant genes. Inhibiting Nrf2 can increase ROS levels
• Glutathione (GSH): an antioxidant. Depleting GSH can increase ROS levels
• Catalase: Catalase converts H2O2 into H2O+O. Inhibiting catalase can increase ROS levels
• SOD1: converts superoxide into hydrogen peroxide. Inhibiting SOD1 can increase ROS levels
• PI3K/AKT pathway: regulates cell survival and metabolism. Inhibiting can increase ROS levels
HIF-1α inhibition: regulates genes involved in metabolism and angiogenesis. Inhibiting HIF-1α can increase ROS
• Glycolysis: Inhibiting glycolysis can increase ROS levels • Fatty acid oxidation: Cancer cells often rely on fatty acid oxidation for energy production.
-Inhibiting fatty acid oxidation can increase ROS levels
• ER stress: Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress can increase ROS levels
• Autophagy: process by which cells recycle damaged organelles and proteins.
-Inhibiting autophagy can increase ROS levels and induce cancer cell death.
• KEAP1/Nrf2 pathway: regulates the expression of antioxidant genes.
    -Inhibiting KEAP1 or activating Nrf2 can increase ROS levels and induce cancer cell death.
• DJ-1: regulates the expression of antioxidant genes. Inhibiting DJ-1 can increase ROS levels
• PARK2: regulates the expression of antioxidant genes. Inhibiting PARK2 can increase ROS levels
SIRT1 inhibition:regulates the expression of antioxidant genes. Inhibiting SIRT1 can increase ROS levels
AMPK activation: regulates energy metabolism and can increase ROS levels when activated.
mTOR inhibition: regulates cell growth and metabolism. Inhibiting mTOR can increase ROS levels
HSP90 inhibition: regulates protein folding and can increase ROS levels when inhibited.
• Proteasome: degrades damaged proteins. Inhibiting the proteasome can increase ROS levels
Lipid peroxidation: a process by which lipids are oxidized, leading to the production of ROS.
    -Increasing lipid peroxidation can increase ROS levels
• Ferroptosis: form of cell death that is regulated by iron and lipid peroxidation.
    -Increasing ferroptosis can increase ROS levels
• Mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP): regulates mitochondrial permeability.
    -Opening the mPTP can increase ROS levels
• BCL-2 family proteins: regulate apoptosis and can increase ROS levels when inhibited.
• Caspase-independent cell death: a form of cell death that is regulated by ROS.
    -Increasing caspase-independent cell death can increase ROS levels
• DNA damage response: regulates the repair of DNA damage. Increasing DNA damage can increase ROS
• Epigenetic regulation: process by which gene expression is regulated.
    -Increasing epigenetic regulation can increase ROS levels

-PKM2, but not PKM1, can be inhibited by direct oxidation of cysteine 358 as an adaptive response to increased intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS)

ProOxidant Strategy:(inhibit the Mevalonate Pathway (likely will also inhibit GPx)
-HydroxyCitrate (HCA) found as supplement online and typically used in a dose of about 1.5g/day or more
-Atorvastatin typically 40-80mg/day, -Dipyridamole typically 200mg 2x/day Combined effect research
-Lycopene typically 100mg/day range (note debatable as it mainly lowers NRF2)

Dual Role of Reactive Oxygen Species and their Application in Cancer Therapy
ROS-Inducing Interventions in Cancer — Canonical + Mechanistic Reference
-generated from AI and Cancer database
ROS rating:  +++ strong | ++ moderate | + weak | ± mixed | 0 none
NRF2:        ↓ suppressed | ↑ activated | ± mixed | 0 none
Conditions:  [D] dose  [Fe] metal  [M] metabolic  [O₂] oxygen
             [L] light [F] formulation [T] tumor-type [C] combination

Item ROS NRF2 Condition Mechanism Class Remarks
ROS">Piperlongumine +++ [D][T] ROS-dominant
ROS">Shikonin +++↓/±[D][T]ROS-dominant
ROS">Vitamin K3 (menadione) +++[D]ROS-dominant
ROS">Copper (ionic / nano) +++[Fe][F]ROS-dominant
ROS">Sodium Selenite +++[D]ROS-dominant
ROS">Juglone +++[D]ROS-dominant
ROS">Auranofin +++[D]ROS-dominant
ROS">Photodynamic Therapy (PDT) +++0[L][O₂]ROS-dominant
ROS">Radiotherapy / Radiation +++0[O₂]ROS-dominant
ROS">Doxorubicin +++[D]ROS-dominant
ROS">Cisplatin ++[D][T]ROS-dominant
ROS">Salinomycin ++[D][T]ROS-dominant
ROS">Artemisinin / DHA ++[Fe][T]ROS-dominant
ROS">Sulfasalazine ++[C][T]ROS-dominant
ROS">FMD / fasting ++[M][C][O₂]ROS-dominant
ROS">Vitamin C (pharmacologic) ++[Fe][D]ROS-dominant
ROS">Silver nanoparticles ++±[F][D]ROS-dominant
ROS">Gambogic acid ++[D][T]ROS-dominant
ROS">Parthenolide ++[D][T]ROS-dominant
ROS">Plumbagin ++[D]ROS-dominant
ROS">Allicin ++[D]ROS-dominant
ROS">Ashwagandha (Withaferin A) ++[D][T]ROS-dominant
ROS">Berberine ++[D][M]ROS-dominant
ROS">PEITC ++[D][C]ROS-dominant
ROS">Methionine restriction +[M][C][T]ROS-secondary
ROS">DCA +±[M][T]ROS-secondary
ROS">Capsaicin +±[D][T]ROS-secondary
ROS">Galloflavin +0[D]ROS-secondary
ROS">Piperine +±[D][F]ROS-secondary
ROS">Propyl gallate +[D]ROS-secondary
ROS">Scoulerine +?[D][T]ROS-secondary
ROS">Thymoquinone ±±[D][T]Dual redox
ROS">Emodin ±±[D][T]Dual redox
ROS">Alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) ±[D][M]NRF2-dominant
ROS">Curcumin ±↑/↓[D][F]NRF2-dominant
ROS">EGCG ±↑/↓[D][O₂]NRF2-dominant
ROS">Quercetin ±↑/↓[D][Fe]NRF2-dominant
ROS">Resveratrol ±[D][M]NRF2-dominant
ROS">Sulforaphane ±↑↑[D]NRF2-dominant
ROS">Lycopene 0Antioxidant
ROS">Rosmarinic acid 0Antioxidant
ROS">Citrate 00Neutral


Scientific Papers found: Click to Expand⟱
1327- EMD,    Emodin induces apoptosis in human lung adenocarcinoma cells through a reactive oxygen species-dependent mitochondrial signaling pathway
- in-vitro, Lung, A549
Cyt‑c↑, Casp2↑, Casp3↑, Casp9↑, ERK↓, Akt↓, ROS↑, MMP↓, Bcl-2↓, BAX↑,
1332- EMD,    Induction of Apoptosis in HepaRG Cell Line by Aloe-Emodin through Generation of Reactive Oxygen Species and the Mitochondrial Pathway
- in-vivo, Nor, HepaRG
*tumCV↓, *ROS↑, *MMP↓, *Fas↑, *P53↑, *P21↑, *Bax:Bcl2↑, *Casp3↑, *Casp8↑, *Casp9↑, *cl‑PARP↑, *TumCCA↑, *P21↑, *cycE/CCNE↑, *cycA1/CCNA1↓, *CDK2↓,
1331- EMD,    Aloe-emodin induces apoptosis of human nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells via caspase-8-mediated activation of the mitochondrial death pathway
- in-vitro, NPC, NA
TumCCA↑, CycB/CCNB1↑, DNAdam↑, Casp3↑, cl‑PARP↑, MMP↓, Ca+2↑, ROS↑,
1328- EMD,    Emodin induces apoptosis of human tongue squamous cancer SCC-4 cells through reactive oxygen species and mitochondria-dependent pathways
- in-vitro, Tong, SCC4
TumCCA↑, P21↑, Chk2↑, CycB/CCNB1↓, cDC2↓, Apoptosis↑, Cyt‑c↑, Casp9↑, Casp3↑, ROS↑, MMP↓, Bax:Bcl2↑, ER Stress↑,
1326- EMD,    Emodin induces a reactive oxygen species-dependent and ATM-p53-Bax mediated cytotoxicity in lung cancer cells
- in-vitro, Lung, A549
Apoptosis↑, ROS↑, P53↑, BAX↑, ATM↑,
1324- EMD,    Is Emodin with Anticancer Effects Completely Innocent? Two Sides of the Coin
- Review, Var, NA
*toxicity↑, *BioAv↓, Akt↓, ERK↓, ROS↑, MMP↓, Bcl-2↓, BAX↑, TumCCA↑,
1323- EMD,    Anticancer action of naturally occurring emodin for the controlling of cervical cancer
- Review, Cerv, NA
TumCCA↑, DNAdam↑, mTOR↓, Casp3↑, Casp8↑, Casp9↑, TGF-β↑, SMAD3↓, p‑SMAD4↓, ROS↑, MMP↓, CXCR4↓, HER2/EBBR2↓, ER Stress↓, TumAuto↑, NOTCH1↓,
1322- EMD,    The versatile emodin: A natural easily acquired anthraquinone possesses promising anticancer properties against a variety of cancers
- Review, Var, NA
Apoptosis↑, TumCP↓, ROS↑, TumAuto↑, EMT↓, TGF-β↓, DNAdam↑, ER Stress↑, TumCCA↑, ATP↓, NF-kB↓, CYP1A1↑, STAC2↓, JAK↓, PI3K↓, Akt↓, MAPK↓, FASN↓, HER2/EBBR2↓, ChemoSen↑, eff↑, ChemoSen↑, angioG↓, VEGF↓, MMP2↓, eNOS↓, FOXD3↑, MMP9↓, TIMP1↑,
1321- EMD,    Antitumor effects of emodin on LS1034 human colon cancer cells in vitro and in vivo: roles of apoptotic cell death and LS1034 tumor xenografts model
- in-vitro, CRC, LS1034 - in-vivo, NA, NA
tumCV↓, TumCCA↑, ROS↑, Ca+2↑, MMP↓, Apoptosis↑, Cyt‑c↑, Casp9↑, Bax:Bcl2↑,
1318- EMD,    Aloe-emodin Induces Apoptosis in Human Liver HL-7702 Cells through Fas Death Pathway and the Mitochondrial Pathway by Generating Reactive Oxygen Species
- in-vitro, Nor, HL7702
*TumCCA↑, *ROS↑, *MMP↓, *Fas↑, *P53↑, *P21↓, *Bax:Bcl2↑, *cl‑Casp3↑, *cl‑Casp8↑, *cl‑Casp9↑, *cl‑PARP↑,
1245- EMD,    Emodin Exhibits Strong Cytotoxic Effect in Cervical Cancer Cells by Activating Intrinsic Pathway of Apoptosis
- in-vitro, Cerv, HeLa
TumCG↓, TumCP↓, Apoptosis↑, ROS↑, Casp3↑, Casp9↑, MMP↓, DNAdam↑, GSH↓,
988- EMD,    Emodin Induced Necroptosis and Inhibited Glycolysis in the Renal Cancer Cells by Enhancing ROS
- in-vitro, RCC, NA
Necroptosis↑, p‑RIP1↑, MLKL↑, ROS↑, Glycolysis↓, GLUT1↓, PI3K↓, Akt↓,

Showing Research Papers: 1 to 12 of 12

* indicates research on normal cells as opposed to diseased cells
Total Research Paper Matches: 12

Pathway results for Effect on Cancer / Diseased Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress

CYP1A1↑, 1,   GSH↓, 1,   ROS↑, 10,  

Mitochondria & Bioenergetics

ATP↓, 1,   MMP↓, 7,  

Core Metabolism/Glycolysis

FASN↓, 1,   Glycolysis↓, 1,  

Cell Death

Akt↓, 4,   Apoptosis↑, 5,   BAX↑, 3,   Bax:Bcl2↑, 2,   Bcl-2↓, 2,   Casp2↑, 1,   Casp3↑, 5,   Casp8↑, 1,   Casp9↑, 5,   Chk2↑, 1,   Cyt‑c↑, 3,   MAPK↓, 1,   MLKL↑, 1,   Necroptosis↑, 1,   p‑RIP1↑, 1,  

Kinase & Signal Transduction

FOXD3↑, 1,   HER2/EBBR2↓, 2,  

Transcription & Epigenetics

tumCV↓, 1,  

Protein Folding & ER Stress

ER Stress↓, 1,   ER Stress↑, 2,  

Autophagy & Lysosomes

TumAuto↑, 2,  

DNA Damage & Repair

ATM↑, 1,   DNAdam↑, 4,   P53↑, 1,   cl‑PARP↑, 1,  

Cell Cycle & Senescence

CycB/CCNB1↓, 1,   CycB/CCNB1↑, 1,   P21↑, 1,   TumCCA↑, 6,  

Proliferation, Differentiation & Cell State

cDC2↓, 1,   EMT↓, 1,   ERK↓, 2,   mTOR↓, 1,   NOTCH1↓, 1,   PI3K↓, 2,   TumCG↓, 1,  

Migration

Ca+2↑, 2,   MMP2↓, 1,   MMP9↓, 1,   SMAD3↓, 1,   p‑SMAD4↓, 1,   STAC2↓, 1,   TGF-β↓, 1,   TGF-β↑, 1,   TIMP1↑, 1,   TumCP↓, 2,  

Angiogenesis & Vasculature

angioG↓, 1,   eNOS↓, 1,   VEGF↓, 1,  

Barriers & Transport

GLUT1↓, 1,  

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling

CXCR4↓, 1,   JAK↓, 1,   NF-kB↓, 1,  

Drug Metabolism & Resistance

ChemoSen↑, 2,   eff↑, 1,  

Clinical Biomarkers

HER2/EBBR2↓, 2,  
Total Targets: 63

Pathway results for Effect on Normal Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress

ROS↑, 2,  

Mitochondria & Bioenergetics

MMP↓, 2,  

Cell Death

Bax:Bcl2↑, 2,   Casp3↑, 1,   cl‑Casp3↑, 1,   Casp8↑, 1,   cl‑Casp8↑, 1,   Casp9↑, 1,   cl‑Casp9↑, 1,   Fas↑, 2,  

Transcription & Epigenetics

tumCV↓, 1,  

DNA Damage & Repair

P53↑, 2,   cl‑PARP↑, 2,  

Cell Cycle & Senescence

CDK2↓, 1,   cycA1/CCNA1↓, 1,   cycE/CCNE↑, 1,   P21↓, 1,   P21↑, 2,   TumCCA↑, 2,  

Drug Metabolism & Resistance

BioAv↓, 1,  

Functional Outcomes

toxicity↑, 1,  
Total Targets: 21

Scientific Paper Hit Count for: ROS, Reactive Oxygen Species
12 Emodin
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#:75  Target#:275  State#:%  Dir#:2
wNotes=0 sortOrder:rid,rpid

 

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