Database Query Results : Thymoquinone, , chemoP

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

Rank Pathway / Target Axis Direction Label Primary Effect Notes / Cancer Relevance Ref
1 Reactive oxygen species (ROS) ↑ ROS Driver Upstream cytotoxic trigger Primary studies show TQ rapidly increases ROS; antioxidant/ROS modulation attenuates downstream effects, supporting ROS as an initiating mechanism in multiple cancer contexts (ref)
2 Glutathione (GSH) redox buffering ↓ GSH Driver Redox-collapse amplification Same prostate cancer study reports early GSH depletion alongside ROS rise; together these form a redox “one-two punch” that helps explain selective stress in tumor cells (ref)
3 Mitochondrial integrity (ΔΨm) ↓ ΔΨm Driver Mitochondrial dysfunction (MOMP axis) Primary leukemia/cancer study reports disruption of mitochondrial membrane potential after TQ exposure (mitochondrial events central to TQ-mediated death) (ref)
4 Intrinsic apoptosis (caspase-9 → caspase-3; PARP) ↑ caspases / ↑ apoptosis Driver Execution-phase cell death Same primary paper reports activation of caspases (8/9/3) with mitochondrial involvement—core evidence for apoptosis as the major outcome pathway (ref)
5 NF-κB signaling ↓ NF-κB activity Secondary Reduced pro-survival / inflammatory transcription Colon cancer work: TQ induces cell death and chemosensitizes cells by inhibiting NF-κB signaling (explicit pathway-direction support) (ref)
6 STAT3 signaling ↓ p-STAT3 / ↓ STAT3 activation Secondary Reduced survival/proliferation signaling Gastric cancer study explicitly reports TQ suppresses constitutive STAT3 activation and related signaling readouts (ref)
7 NRF2 antioxidant-response axis (NRF2/HO-1 program) ↑ NRF2 pathway (often as stress-response) Adaptive Cellular antioxidant counter-response In TNBC context, a primary study reports TQ upregulates NRF2 (and evaluates downstream immune/checkpoint consequences), consistent with NRF2 acting as an adaptive response to redox stress (ref)
8 HIF-1α hypoxia signaling ↓ HIF-1α protein / ↓ HIF-1α program Adaptive Loss of hypoxia survival signaling Renal cancer hypoxia paper identifies TQ as suppressing HIF-1α and links this to selective killing under hypoxia (ref)
9 Glycolysis / Warburg output (hypoxia-linked) ↓ glycolysis (↓ HIF-1α–mediated glycolytic genes; ↓ glycolytic metabolism) Phenotypic Metabolic suppression In hypoxic renal cancer, TQ suppresses HIF-1α–mediated glycolysis; in CRC, TQ inhibits glycolytic metabolism alongside tumor growth limitation (ref)  |  (ref)


chemoP, ChemoProtective: Click to Expand ⟱
Source:
Type:
Protects normal cells against the effect of Chemo.
Scientific Papers found: Click to Expand⟱
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/CCND1↓,
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.

2085- TQ,    Anticancer Activities of Nigella Sativa (Black Cumin)
- Review, Var, NA
MMP↓, TQ induces apoptosis, disrupts mitochondrial membrane potential and triggers the activation of caspases 8, 9 and 3 in HL-60 cells.
Casp3↑,
Casp8↑,
Casp9↓,
cl‑PARP↑, PARP cleavage and the release of cytochrome c from mitochondria into the cytoplasm.
Cyt‑c↑,
Bax:Bcl2↑, marked increase in Bax/Bcl2 ratios
NF-kB↓, TQ also down-regulates the expression of NF-kappa B-regulated antiapoptotic (IAP1, IAP2, XIAP Bcl-2, Bcl-xL, and survivin) gene products
IAP1↓,
IAP2↓,
XIAP↓,
Bcl-xL↓,
survivin↓,
cJun↑, TQ inducing apoptosis by the activation of c-Jun NH(2)-terminal kinase and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase pathways in pancreatic cancer cell.
p38↑,
Akt↑, TQ effectively inhibited human umbilical vein endothelial cell migration, invasion, and tube formation by suppressing the activation of AKT
chemoP↑, TQ can lower the toxicity of other anticancer drugs (for example, cyclophosphamide) by an up-regulation of antioxidant mechanisms, indicating a potential clinical application for these agents to minimize the toxic effects of treatment with anticancer
*radioP↑, Cemek et al. (2006) showed that N. sativa and glutathione treatment significantly antagonize the effects of radiation. Therefore, N. sativa may be a beneficial agent in protection against ionizing radiation-related tissue injury.

2090- TQ,    Thymoquinone as a Potential Adjuvant Therapy for Cancer Treatment: Evidence from Preclinical Studies
- Review, Var, NA
AntiCan↑, has been found to exhibit anticancer effects in numerous preclinical studies
ChemoSen↑, TQ can specifically sensitize tumor cells toward conventional cancer treatments (e.g., radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy)
RadioS↑,
chemoP↑, and simultaneously minimize therapy-associated toxic effects in normal cells
*radioP↑,

2094- TQ,    Cytotoxicity of Nigella sativa Extracts Against Cancer Cells: A Review of In Vitro and In Vivo Studies
- Review, Var, NA
ROS↑, Oxidative stress generation leading to cancer cell death
angioG↓, Suppression of angiogenesis and metastasis by inhibiting VEGF and MMPs.
TumMeta↓,
VEGF↓,
MMPs↓,
P53↑, upregulation of p53, Bax, caspases
BAX↑,
Casp↑,
Bcl-2↓, downregulating anti-apoptotic factors (Bcl-2, survivin).
survivin↓,
*ROS↓, antioxidant activity neutralizes reactive oxygen species (ROS)
ChemoSen↑, enhances the efficacy of conventional chemotherapeutics like doxorubicin, cisplatin, and 5-fluorouracil while reducing their toxicity.
chemoP↑,
MDR1↓, helps overcome drug resistance by modulating multidrug resistance (MDR) proteins
BioAv↓, thymoquinone, their absorption and stability are limited due to poor solubility and rapid metabolism
BioAv↑, To improve efficacy, nanoformulations, such as lipid-based carriers and nanoparticles, have been explored

2100- TQ,    Dual properties of Nigella Sative: Anti-oxidant and Pro-oxidant
- Review, NA, NA
ROS⇅, Pubmed data indicated that NS has both anti-oxidant and pro-oxidant properties in different cell types
*antiOx↑, NS acts as an anti-oxidant by scavenging ROS [4]. It can ameliorate ischemic reperfusion injury conditions and attenuated ROS in heart [5] intestine [6] and kidney [7]
*SOD↑, improved the activities of various enzymes like superoxide dismutase [SOD] and myeloperoxidase (MPO)
*MPO↑,
*neuroP↑, NS oil has been found to be neuroprotective against oxidative stress in epileptogenesis, pilocarpine-induced seizures [25] and opioid tolerance
*chemoP↑, Anticancer drugs leave toxic effect due to over-production of ROS. NS oil or TQ can potentially up-regulate anti-oxidant mechanisms caused by anticancer drug
*radioP↑, NS seed extracts can protect normal tissue from oxidative damage during radiotherapy of cancer patients [35,36]
NF-kB↓, TQ has been shown to exhibit down regulation of NF-κB expression in lung cancer cells
IAP1↓, Anti-apoptotic (IAP1, IAP2, XIAP Bcl-2, Bcl-xL, survivin), proliferative (cyclin D1, cyclooxygenase-2, and c-Myc) and angiogenic genes (matrix metalloproteinase-9 orMMP-9) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) were down-regulated
IAP2↓,
XIAP↓,
Bcl-xL↓,
survivin↓,
COX2↓,
MMP9↓,
VEGF↓,
ROS↑, TQ causes release of ROS in ABC cells which in turn inhibits NF-κB activity
P21↑, TQ up regulated the expression of p21 and down regulated the histone deacetylase (HDAC) activity and induced histone hyperacetylation causing induction of apoptosis and inhibition of proliferation in pancreatic cancer cell
HDAC↓,
GSH↓, TQ was found to decrease glutathione (GSH) levels in prostate cancer cells resulting in up-regulated expression of GADD45 alpha (growth arrest and DNA damage inducible gene) and AIF
GADD45A↑,
AIF↑,
STAT3↓, TQ suppressed the STAT 3; the signal transducer and activator of transcription which is involved in the abnormal transformation of a number of human malignancies [53].

2119- TQ,    Dual properties of Nigella Sativa: anti-oxidant and pro-oxidant
- Review, Var, NA
*ROS↓, NS has both anti-oxidant and pro-oxidant properties in different cell types hence should be used carefully because it acts as a cytoprotective or cytotoxic agent in inflammatory and malignant conditions respectively.
ROS↑, malignant conditions
chemoP↑, It is reported that nigella can reduce the toxic effects of anticancer drugs
RenoP↑, NS has been shown to improve multiple organ toxicity in models of oxidative stress
hepatoP↑,
NLRP3↓, NLRP3 inflammasome was inactivated partially by inhibition of ROS in melanoma cells by TQ administration.
neuroP↑, NS oil has been found to be neuroprotective against oxidative stress in epileptogenesis
NF-kB↓, TQ has been shown to exhibit down regulation of NF-κB expression in lung cancer cells and in osteosarcoma cells
P21↑, TQ up regulated the expression of p21 and down regulated the histone deacetylase (HDAC) activity and induced histone hyperacetylation causing induction of apoptosis and inhibition of proliferation in pancreatic cancer cell
HDAC↓,
Apoptosis↑,
TumCP↓,
GSH↓, TQ was found to decrease glutathione (GSH) levels in prostate cancer cells resulting in up-regulated expression of GADD45 alpha
GADD45A↑,
GSK‐3β↑, TQ caused the apoptosis of tumor cells by modulation of wnt signaling through activation of GSK-3β

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]


* indicates research on normal cells as opposed to diseased cells
Total Research Paper Matches: 7

Pathway results for Effect on Cancer / Diseased Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress ⓘ

GSH↓, 2,   ROS↑, 4,   ROS⇅, 3,  

Mitochondria & Bioenergetics ⓘ

AIF↑, 1,   MEK↓, 1,   MMP↓, 2,   Raf↓, 1,   XIAP↓, 3,  

Core Metabolism/Glycolysis ⓘ

cMyc↓, 1,  

Cell Death ⓘ

Akt↓, 2,   Akt↑, 1,   p‑Akt↓, 1,   Apoptosis↑, 3,   BAX↑, 2,   Bax:Bcl2↑, 1,   Bcl-2↓, 2,   Bcl-2↑, 1,   Bcl-xL↓, 2,   Casp↑, 2,   Casp3↑, 2,   Casp7↑, 1,   Casp8↑, 1,   Casp9↓, 1,   Casp9↑, 1,   Cyt‑c↑, 1,   IAP1↓, 2,   IAP2↓, 2,   JNK↑, 1,   p27↑, 1,   p38↑, 2,   survivin↓, 4,   Telomerase↓, 1,  

Transcription & Epigenetics ⓘ

cJun↑, 1,  

DNA Damage & Repair ⓘ

DNAdam↑, 1,   GADD45A↑, 2,   P53↑, 1,   cl‑PARP↑, 3,  

Cell Cycle & Senescence ⓘ

cycD1/CCND1↓, 1,   P21↑, 3,   TumCCA↓, 1,   TumCCA↑, 1,  

Proliferation, Differentiation & Cell State ⓘ

EMT↓, 1,   ERK↓, 2,   GSK‐3β↓, 1,   GSK‐3β↑, 1,   HDAC↓, 2,   mTOR↓, 2,   PI3K↓, 2,   PTEN↑, 2,   RAS↓, 1,   STAT3↓, 3,  

Migration ⓘ

E-cadherin↓, 1,   MMP2↓, 1,   MMP9↓, 2,   MMPs↓, 2,   TumCI↓, 1,   TumCMig↓, 1,   TumCP↓, 2,   TumMeta↓, 2,   Twist↓, 1,   β-catenin/ZEB1↓, 1,  

Angiogenesis & Vasculature ⓘ

angioG↓, 1,   angioG↑, 1,   VEGF↓, 4,  

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling ⓘ

COX2↓, 2,   NF-kB↓, 4,   p‑NF-kB↑, 1,   p65↓, 1,  

Protein Aggregation ⓘ

NLRP3↓, 1,  

Drug Metabolism & Resistance ⓘ

BioAv↓, 1,   BioAv↑, 2,   ChemoSen↑, 4,   eff↑, 1,   MDR1↓, 1,   RadioS↑, 2,   selectivity↑, 1,  

Functional Outcomes ⓘ

AntiCan↑, 1,   chemoP↑, 6,   hepatoP↑, 1,   neuroP↑, 1,   RenoP↑, 1,  
Total Targets: 81

Pathway results for Effect on Normal Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress ⓘ

antiOx↑, 2,   Catalase↑, 1,   GPx↑, 1,   GSTA1↑, 1,   MPO↑, 1,   ROS↓, 2,   SOD↑, 2,  

Migration ⓘ

MMP13↓, 1,  

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling ⓘ

COX2↓, 1,   IL1β↓, 1,   Inflam↓, 1,   PGE2↓, 1,  

Drug Metabolism & Resistance ⓘ

BioAv↝, 1,   Half-Life↝, 1,  

Functional Outcomes ⓘ

chemoP↑, 1,   hepatoP↑, 1,   neuroP↑, 1,   radioP↑, 3,  
Total Targets: 18

Scientific Paper Hit Count for: chemoP, ChemoProtective
7 Thymoquinone
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#:162  Target#:1171  State#:%  Dir#:%
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