Database Query Results : Berberine, , UPR

BBR, Berberine: Click to Expand ⟱
Features:
Berberine is a chemical found in some plants like European barberry, goldenseal, goldthread, Oregon grape, phellodendron, and tree turmeric. Berberine is a bitter-tasting and yellow-colored chemical.
Coptis (commonly referring to Coptidis Rhizoma, a traditional Chinese medicinal herb) contains bioactive alkaloids (most notably berberine and coptisine) that have been studied for their pharmacological effects—including their influence on reactive oxygen species (ROS) and related pathways.

– Berberine is known for its relatively low oral bioavailability, often cited at less than 1%. This low bioavailability is mainly due to poor intestinal absorption and active efflux by transport proteins such as P-glycoprotein.
– Despite the low bioavailability, berberine is still pharmacologically active, and its metabolites may also contribute to its overall effects.

• Effective Dosage in Studies
– Many clinical trials or preclinical studies use dosages in the range of 500 to 1500 mg per day, typically administered in divided doses.
– Therefore, to obtain a bioactive dose of berberine, supplementation in a standardized extract form is necessary.

-IC50 in cancer cell lines: Approximately 10–100 µM (commonly around 20–50 µM in many models)
-IC50 in normal cell lines: Generally higher (often above 100 µM), although this can vary with cell type
- In vivo studies: Dosing regimens in animal models generally range from about 50 to 200 mg/kg
- very effective AChE inhibitor (Alzheimers)
- Berberine may enhance the effects of blood-thinning medications like warfarin and aspirin.


-Note half-life reports vary 2.5-90hrs?.
-low solubility of apigenin in water : BioAv
Pathways:
- induce ROS production
- ROS↑ related: MMP↓(ΔΨm), ER Stress↑, Ca+2↑, Cyt‑c↑, Caspases↑, DNA damage↑, UPR, cl-PARP↑, HSP↓
- Lowers AntiOxidant defense in Cancer Cells: NRF2↓, GSH↓
- Raises AntiOxidant defense in Normal Cells: NRF2↑, SOD↑, GSH↑, Catalase↑,
- lowers Inflammation : NF-kB↓, COX2↓, p38↓, Pro-Inflammatory Cytokines : IL-1β↓, TNF-α↓, IL-6↓, IL-8↓
- PI3K/AKT(Inhibition), JAK/STATs, Wnt/β-catenin, AMPK, MAPK/ERK, and JNK.
- inhibit Growth/Metastases : , MMPs↓, MMP2↓, MMP9↓, IGF-1↓, uPA↓, VEGF↓, ROCK1↓, FAK↓, RhoA↓, NF-κB↓, CXCR4↓, TGF-β↓, α-SMA↓, ERK↓
- reactivate genes thereby inhibiting cancer cell growth : HDAC↓, DNMT1↓, EZH2↓, P53↑, HSP↓
- cause Cell cycle arrest : TumCCA↑, cyclin D1↓, cyclin E↓, CDK2↓, CDK4↓, CDK6↓,
- inhibits Migration/Invasion : TumCMig↓, TumCI↓, FAK↓, ERK↓,
- inhibits glycolysis /Warburg Effect and ATP depletion : HIF-1α↓, PKM2↓, cMyc↓, GLUT1↓, LDH↓, LDHA↓, HK2↓, PFKs↓, PDKs↓, Glucose↓, GlucoseCon↓
- inhibits angiogenesis↓ : VEGF↓, HIF-1α↓, Notch↓, FGF↓, PDGF↓, EGFR↓, Integrins↓,
- inhibits Cancer Stem Cells : CSC↓, Hh↓, GLi1↓, CD133↓, β-catenin↓, n-myc↓, sox2↓, notch2↓, nestin↓, OCT4↓,
- 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 Primary Effect Notes / Cancer Relevance Ref
1 AMPK → mTOR axis ↑ AMPK / ↓ mTOR signaling Metabolic stress + growth suppression In vivo/in vitro colon tumorigenesis model: berberine activates AMPK, inhibits mTOR signaling and reduces proliferation/tumorigenesis, growth suppression, autophagy, HIF-1α ↓, glycolysis ↓, berberine’s known mitochondrial/energetic effects (ref)
2 Mitochondrial dysfunction / ROS generation ↑ ROS / mitochondrial stress Upstream metabolic trigger Berberine inhibits mitochondrial function, increases ROS, and contributes to AMPK activation and downstream apoptosis (ref)
3 Mitochondrial apoptosis (cytochrome c release) ↑ cytochrome c release Intrinsic death signaling Oral cancer model: berberine reduces mitochondrial membrane potential, releases cytochrome c, activates caspase-3 (ref)
4 Intrinsic apoptosis (caspase-3 activation) ↑ caspase-3 activation Programmed cell death Same oral cancer study documents caspase-3 activation as a key execution marker (ref)
5 NF-κB signaling (p65 activation) ↓ NF-κB activation Reduced pro-survival transcription Colon cancer model reports inhibition of p65 phosphorylation; interpreted as secondary to metabolic/redox stress (ref)
6 Cell cycle control ↑ G1 arrest Proliferation blockade Prostate cancer model: berberine induces G1-phase cell cycle arrest and caspase-3–dependent apoptosis (ref)
7 Hypoxia / glycolysis signaling (HIF-1α) ↓ HIF-1α protein Warburg / glycolysis suppression Berberine suppresses mTOR and reduces HIF-1α protein expression downstream of AMPK activation (ref)
8 Angiogenesis signaling (HIF-1α → VEGF axis) ↓ VEGF signaling Reduced vascular support Lung cancer study: berberine suppresses VEGF signaling alongside HIF-1α inhibition (ref)
9 PI3K–AKT–mTOR signaling ↓ PI3K / AKT / mTOR Survival pathway suppression Gastric cancer paper: berberine represses PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling and improves chemosensitivity (ref)
10 Migration / invasion programs ↓ migration & invasion Anti-metastatic phenotype Tongue SCC model: berberine suppresses migration and invasion with associated signaling changes (ref)
11 Telomerase (hTERT) / immortalization axis ↓ hTERT-related signaling Reduced proliferative capacity Lung cancer study includes AP-2/hTERT regulatory axis modulation by berberine (ref)
12 In vivo tumor suppression ↓ tumorigenesis Demonstrated anti-tumor effect Colon tumorigenesis model confirms reduced proliferation and tumor burden with berberine (ref)


UPR, Unfolded Protein Response: Click to Expand ⟱
Source:
Type:
Cellular stress response related to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, which involves protein folding, quality control, and signaling pathways. The unfolded protein response (UPR) is the cells' way of maintaining the balance of protein folding in the endoplasmic reticulum. (UPR) is triggered by the presence of misfolded proteins in the endoplasmic reticulum.
The UPR is a cellular stress response activated by the accumulation of unfolded or misfolded proteins in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER).
- It is primarily mediated by three ER-resident sensors: IRE1α, PERK, and ATF6.

Cancer cells often experience high levels of protein synthesis, hypoxia, nutrient deprivation, and oxidative stress, all of which can activate the UPR.
– Numerous studies have reported that key UPR components (e.g., GRP78/BiP, IRE1α, PERK, CHOP) are overexpressed in various malignancies such as breast, pancreatic, lung, and prostate cancers.

Unfolded Protein Response is typically upregulated in cancers and is associated with poorer prognosis due to its role in promoting cell survival, adaptation to stress, and therapeutic resistance. Although the UPR harbors the potential for tumor-suppressive (apoptotic) effects under severe stress conditions, its predominant activation in tumors supports an adaptive, protumorigenic state that facilitates cancer progression. Targeting UPR components and modulating this balance remain promising therapeutic strategies.


Scientific Papers found: Click to Expand⟱
2676- BBR,    Berberine protects rat heart from ischemia/reperfusion injury via activating JAK2/STAT3 signaling and attenuating endoplasmic reticulum stress
- in-vivo, Nor, NA - in-vivo, CardioV, NA
*cardioP↑, Pretreatment with BBR significantly reduced MI/R-induced myocardial infarct size, improved cardiac function, and suppressed myocardial apoptosis and oxidative damage.
*ROS↓,
*ER Stress↓, pretreatment with BBR suppressed MI/R-induced ER stress
*p‑PERK↓, evidenced by down-regulating the phosphorylation levels of myocardial PERK and eIF2α and the expression of ATF4 and CHOP in heart tissues.
*p‑eIF2α↓,
*ATF4↓,
CHOP↓,
*JAK2↑, Pretreatment with BBR also activated the JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway in heart tissues
*STAT3↑,
*UPR↓, Therefore, reducing excessive UPR, also referred to as ER stress, is of great importance in ameliorating MI/R injury.


* indicates research on normal cells as opposed to diseased cells
Total Research Paper Matches: 1

Pathway results for Effect on Cancer / Diseased Cells:


Protein Folding & ER Stress

CHOP↓, 1,  
Total Targets: 1

Pathway results for Effect on Normal Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress

ROS↓, 1,  

Protein Folding & ER Stress

p‑eIF2α↓, 1,   ER Stress↓, 1,   p‑PERK↓, 1,   UPR↓, 1,  

Proliferation, Differentiation & Cell State

STAT3↑, 1,  

Angiogenesis & Vasculature

ATF4↓, 1,  

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling

JAK2↑, 1,  

Functional Outcomes

cardioP↑, 1,  
Total Targets: 9

Scientific Paper Hit Count for: UPR, Unfolded Protein Response
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#:41  Target#:459  State#:%  Dir#:%
wNotes=on sortOrder:rid,rpid

 

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