| Rank |
Pathway / Axis |
Cancer Cells |
Normal Cells |
TSF |
Primary Effect |
Notes / Interpretation |
| 1 |
ROS / Mitochondrial redox stress |
↑ (primary; dose-dependent) |
↑ (high concentration only) |
P/R |
Oxidative stress → apoptosis |
Central mechanism; rapid ROS generation drives mitochondrial membrane depolarization and cytochrome c release. |
| 2 |
Intrinsic apoptosis (Bax↑, Bcl-2↓, caspases) |
↑ |
↑ (high concentration only) |
R/G |
Programmed cell death |
Often ROS-dependent; cancer cells show greater susceptibility due to higher basal oxidative stress. |
| 3 |
NF-κB signaling |
↓ |
↓ (context-dependent) |
R/G |
Reduced pro-survival transcription |
Suppresses inflammatory and anti-apoptotic gene expression; contributes to anti-proliferative effect. |
| 4 |
STAT3 axis |
↓ |
↔ |
R/G |
Reduced survival signaling |
STAT3 inhibition reported in multiple tumor models; linked to decreased proliferation and invasion. |
| 5 |
MAPK (JNK↑ / ERK↓ context-dependent) |
↑ JNK; ↓ ERK |
↔ / ↑ stress (high dose) |
P/R |
Stress-activated apoptosis signaling |
JNK activation promotes apoptosis; ERK suppression reduces proliferation. |
| 6 |
Cell Cycle (Cyclin D1, CDK regulation) |
↓ proliferation |
↔ |
G |
G0/G1 or G2/M arrest |
Checkpoint enforcement varies by tumor type and dose. |
| 7 |
NRF2 axis |
↓ (overwhelmed by ROS; context-dependent) |
↑ (adaptive; low dose) |
R/G |
Redox defense modulation |
Low dose may activate adaptive NRF2; higher doses override antioxidant defenses in cancer cells. |
| 8 |
Ca²⁺ / ER stress |
↑ (stress-dependent) |
↑ (high concentration only) |
P/R |
ER-mitochondrial stress coupling |
Calcium dysregulation contributes to apoptosis cascade. |
| 9 |
Ferroptosis |
↑ (lipid ROS-linked; investigational) |
↔ |
R/G |
Lipid peroxidation stress |
ROS-driven lipid damage suggests ferroptosis overlap but not primary established mechanism. |
| 10 |
HIF-1α |
↓ (model-dependent) |
↔ |
G |
Reduced hypoxia adaptation |
Reported suppression in some tumor contexts. |
| 11 |
Clinical Translation Constraint |
↓ (constraint) |
↓ (constraint) |
— |
Toxicity + limited PK data |
Oral toxicity and narrow therapeutic index limit systemic development. |