Betulinic acid / ChemoSen Cancer Research Results

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)

Betulinic acid — Betulinic acid is a naturally occurring lupane-type pentacyclic triterpenoid with broad experimental anticancer activity, especially against melanoma, neuroectodermal, glioma, breast, colorectal, and other solid-tumor models. It is a natural-product small molecule, usually abbreviated BA or BetA, and is found in several plants, classically birch bark, with semi-synthesis commonly starting from betulin. A distinguishing feature is preferential induction of tumor-cell death through direct mitochondrial injury with relative sparing of many non-neoplastic cells in preclinical systems. Its main translational limitation is very poor aqueous solubility with correspondingly weak oral/systemic developability unless formulation or derivatization is used.

Primary mechanisms (ranked):

  1. Direct mitochondrial membrane permeabilization with intrinsic apoptosis activation
  2. Mitochondrial ROS increase with collapse of mitochondrial membrane potential and cytochrome c release
  3. ER-stress and unfolded-protein-response activation, including GRP78-linked stress signaling
  4. Suppression of NF-κB and other pro-survival transcriptional programs, including Sp-family signaling in some models
  5. Cell-cycle arrest with reduced cyclin/CDK signaling
  6. Anti-migratory and anti-invasive effects via EMT, FAK, ROCK1, MMP, and cytoskeletal remodeling pathways
  7. Secondary metabolic suppression of aerobic glycolysis and hypoxia-response signaling in susceptible models
  8. Adjunct sensitization to chemo- or radiotherapy in selected preclinical settings

Bioavailability / PK relevance: Betulinic acid is highly lipophilic and poorly water-soluble, which strongly limits oral absorption and systemic exposure. PK behavior is formulation-dependent, and much of the translational literature focuses on nanoparticles, liposomes, micelles, conjugates, or topical delivery rather than conventional oral dosing.

In-vitro vs systemic exposure relevance: Many in-vitro anticancer studies use low-to-mid micromolar concentrations, which are often difficult to reproduce reliably in vivo with unformulated parent betulinic acid. Accordingly, mechanistic findings are useful biologically, but direct concentration matching to standard oral/systemic use is often poor unless enhanced-delivery systems are used.

Clinical evidence status: Strong preclinical and formulation-development literature; very limited human oncology evidence. Cancer-facing clinical development appears to remain early-phase/topical, with orphan designation for topical metastatic melanoma but no FDA approval for that indication. Betulinic acid itself is not an established approved anticancer drug.

-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

Mechanistic profile

Rank Pathway / Axis Cancer Cells Normal Cells TSF Primary Effect Notes / Interpretation
1 Mitochondrial permeabilization ↑ MOMP, ↓ ΔΨm, ↑ cytochrome c release, ↑ apoptosis ↔ / milder effect P-R Core tumor-selective death trigger Best-supported central mechanism; helps explain activity in apoptosis-competent but therapy-resistant tumors.
2 Mitochondrial ROS increase ↑ ROS ↔ / possible antioxidant sparing (context-dependent) P-R Amplifies mitochondrial stress and death signaling ROS appears mechanistically relevant in many tumor models, but not every study makes it the dominant initiating event.
3 Caspase axis and caspase-independent death ↑ caspase-9, ↑ caspase-3, ↑ PARP cleavage; caspase-independent death also reported ↔ R-G Executes apoptosis after mitochondrial injury BA can still kill some tumor cells when classical caspase execution is partly blocked, indicating non-canonical death contribution.
4 ER stress / UPR / GRP78 ↑ ER stress, ↑ UPR, ↑ GRP78 stress signaling ↔ R-G Links proteostatic stress to apoptosis and metastasis suppression Especially relevant in breast and gastric cancer models; may also connect to metabolic suppression and chemosensitization.
5 NF-κB survival signaling ↓ NF-κB ↔ / ↓ inflammatory tone R-G Reduces survival, inflammatory, and resistance programs Common downstream convergence node across several tumor types.
6 Cell-cycle machinery ↓ cyclin D1, ↓ CDK2, ↓ CDK4, ↑ cell-cycle arrest ↔ G Slows proliferation Usually supportive rather than primary; often follows stress and survival-pathway disruption.
7 EMT / invasion / matrix remodeling ↓ EMT, ↓ FAK, ↓ ROCK1, ↓ MMP2, ↓ MMP9, ↓ migration, ↓ invasion ↔ G Antimetastatic effect Consistent with reduced motility and invasive phenotype in multiple solid-tumor models.
8 Glycolysis ↓ glucose uptake, ↓ lactate, ↓ ECAR, ↓ HK2, ↓ PKM2, ↓ LDHA ↔ G Secondary metabolic suppression Not the universal initiating mechanism; appears important in selected breast-cancer and GRP78-linked systems.
9 HIF-1α hypoxia axis ↓ HIF-1α, ↓ VEGF, ↓ GLUT1, ↓ PDK1 ↔ G Reduces hypoxic adaptation and angiogenic drive Relevant in hypoxic tumor biology and helps explain antiangiogenic/metabolic effects in some models.
10 NRF2 / antioxidant buffering ↓ NRF2 or ↓ redox buffering (model-dependent) ↔ / possible preservation of antioxidant tone (context-dependent) R-G May widen tumor redox vulnerability Direction is not uniform across all models; safer to treat this as contextual rather than universally core.
11 Ca²⁺ stress ↑ Ca²⁺ (context-dependent) ↔ P-R Supports organelle stress and apoptotic signaling Usually part of the broader mitochondrial/ER stress network rather than a stand-alone primary target.
12 Radiosensitization or Chemosensitization ↑ sensitivity to radiation or selected drugs Unclear G Adjunct leverage Preclinical evidence supports additive or sensitizing effects with irradiation and with some chemotherapy settings, but this is not yet clinically established.
13 Clinical Translation Constraint Poor solubility and limited systemic exposure constrain reproducibility Same formulation constraint G Delivery bottleneck Main barrier is not lack of mechanistic richness but drug-like exposure; translation currently depends heavily on formulation, derivatization, or topical/local use.

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)
ChemoSen, chemo-sensitization: Click to Expand ⟱
Source:
Type:
The effectiveness of chemotherapy by increasing cancer cell sensitivity to the drugs used to treat them, which is known as “chemo-sensitization”.

Chemo-Sensitizers:
-Curcumin
-Resveratrol
-EGCG
-Quercetin
-Genistein
-Berberine
-Piperine: alkaloid from black pepper
-Ginsenosides: active components of ginseng
-Silymarin
-Allicin
-Lycopene
-Ellagic acid
-caffeic acid phenethyl ester
-flavopiridol
-oleandrin
-ursolic acid
-butein
-betulinic acid
Scientific Papers found: Click to Expand⟱
2763- BetA,    Betulinic Acid Inhibits the Stemness of Gastric Cancer Cells by Regulating the GRP78-TGF-β1 Signaling Pathway and Macrophage Polarization
- in-vitro, GC, NA
GRP78/BiP↓, The results indicated that BA inhibited not only GRP78-mediated stemness-related protein expression and GRP78-TGF-β-mediated macrophage polarization
TGF-β↓, BA Inhibits the Expression of GRP78, TGF-β1, and Stemness Markers in Human Gastric Cancer Cells
ChemoSen↑, BA is a promising candidate for clinical application in combination-chemotherapy targeting cancer stemness.
CSCs↓,
SMAD2↓, BA inhibited TGF-β/Smad2/3 signaling, TGF-β1 secretion, and OCT4 expression in a dose-dependent manner
SMAD3↓,
OCT4↓,

2759- BetA,    Chemopreventive and Chemotherapeutic Potential of Betulin and Betulinic Acid: Mechanistic Insights From In Vitro, In Vivo and Clinical Studies
- Review, Var, NA
chemoPv↑, chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic effects of betulin and betulinic acid by presenting in vitro, in vivo
ChemoSen↑,
*Inflam↓, right side depicts anti-inflammatory effect by suppressing proinflammatory mediators
*NRF2↑, boosting NRF2 (antioxidant/anti-inflammatory).
*NF-kB↓, suppressing proinflammatory mediators (NF-κB and COX)
*COX2↓,
ROS↑, By rapidly increasing the generation of reactive oxidative species and concurrently dissipating mitochondrial membrane potential in a dose- and time-dependent manner, betulinic acid also has an anticancer effect on melanoma cells
MMP↓,
Sp1/3/4↓, nude mice bearing LNCaP cell xenografts has been observed by betulinic acid treatment and this result was associated with reduction in the expression of Sp1, Sp3, and Sp4 proteins and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)
VEGF↓,

2752- BetA,    Betulinic acid: a natural product with anticancer activity
- Review, Var, NA
selectivity↑, nontransformed cells of different origin, e.g., fibroblasts, melanocytes, neuronal cells and peripheral blood lymphocytes, have been reported to be much more resistant to the cytotoxic effect of BA than cancer cells
ChemoSen↑, BA was found to cooperate with various chemotherapeutic drugs, including doxorubicin, etoposide, cisplatin, taxol, and actinomycin D, to induce apoptosis and to inhibit clonogenic survival of tumor cells
RadioS↑, These reports suggest that using BetA as sensitizer in chemotherapy-, radiotherapy-, or TRAIL-based combination regimens may be a novel strategy to enhance the efficacy of anticancer therapy.
MMP↓, BA directly induces loss of mitochondrial membrane potenti
cl‑Casp3↑, BA, induced cleavage of both caspases-8 and -3 in cytosolic extracts.
Cyt‑c↑, cytochrome c, released from mitochondria undergoing BA-mediated permeability transition, activated caspase-3 but not caspase-8 in a cell-free system.
ROS↑, Cleavage of caspases-3 and -8 was preceded by disturbance of mitochondrial membrane potential and by generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS).
NF-kB↑, BA is a potent activator of NF-kB in a variety of tumor cell lines.
TOP1↓, BA blocks the catalytic activity of topoisomerase I by abrogating the inter- action of the enzyme and the DNA substrate

2750- BetA,  GEM,    Betulinic acid, a major therapeutic triterpene of Celastrus orbiculatus Thunb., acts as a chemosensitizer of gemcitabine by promoting Chk1 degradation
- in-vitro, PC, Bxpc-3 - in-vitro, Lung, H1299
CHK1↓, Betulinic acid destabilized Chk1 protein and conferred chemopotentiating effects of gemcitabine in vitro and in vivo
ChemoSen↑,
tumCV↓, A combination therapy of gemcitabine with betulinic acid produced synergistic pharmacologic interaction on cell viability, apoptosis and DNA double-strand breaks.
Apoptosis↑,
DNAdam↑,

2747- BetA,    Betulinic acid, a natural compound with potent anticancer effects
- Review, Var, NA
selectivity↑, potently effective against a wide variety of cancer cells, also those derived from therapy-resistant and refractory tumors, whereas it has been found to be relatively nontoxic for healthy cells
Cyt‑c↑, induces Bax/Bak-independent cytochrome-c release.
*toxicity↓, In general, BetA is concluded to be less toxic to cells from healthy tissues.
TOP1↓, topoisomerase I/II
NF-kB↓, transcription factor NF-kB
ROS↑, Consistently, in glioma cells BetA-induced ROS generation
RadioS↑, Treatment with BetA in combination with irradiation resulted in additive growth inhibition of melanoma cells.
ChemoSen↑, BetA cooperated with anticancer drugs, doxorubicin and etoposide, to induce apoptosis and to inhibit clonogenic survival in SHEP neuroblastoma cells

5591- BetA,    Advances and challenges in betulinic acid therapeutics and delivery systems for breast cancer prevention and treatment
- Review, BC, NA
BioAv↓, However, its poor water solubility limits its optimal therapeutic potential.
BioAv↑, nano-drug delivery systems (NDDSs) have gained significant attention as a method to substantially improve low solubility and poor drug bioavailability, enhance targeted drug delivery, and reduce side effects.
selectivity↑, reviews by Simone Fulda23,24 strengthened BA's potential for cancer treatment and prevention, particularly its ability to selectively trigger apoptosis in cancer cells while causing minimal harm to normal cells.
eff↑, It is important to note that the anticancer effects of BA on different types of tumors are more potent at a pH lower than 6.8.34
angioG↓, figure 3
*antiOx↑,
*Inflam↓,
MMP↓, BA-induced mitochondrial depolarization
Bcl-2↓, BA treatment has been shown to lower Bcl-2 expression and increase Bax, resulting in the activation of caspase-9 and caspase-3 through the mitochondrial pathway.63
BAX↑,
Casp9↑,
Casp3↑,
GRP78/BiP?, BA directly targets GRP78, triggering ER stress by activating the PERK-eIF2α-CHOP apoptotic cascade
ER Stress↑,
PERK↑,
CHOP↑,
ChemoSen↑, BA's ability to chemosensitize BC cells to taxanes highlights its importance in situations of drug resistance
SESN2↑, Under hypoxia, BA strongly increases SESN2 expression.
ROS↑, Reducing SESN2 levels enhances BA-induced ROS production, DNA damage, and radiosensitivity, while decreasing autophagic flux, indicating that SESN2-mediated autophagy serves as a protective adaptive response.68
MOMP↓, decreases the mitochondrial outer membrane potential (MOMP),
MAPK↑, This leads to the activation of p38 Mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK), the release of cytochrome C, apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF),
Cyt‑c↑,
AIF↑,
STAT3↓, BA suppresses the signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) 3 signaling pathways
FAK↓, BA's inhibition of STAT3, as well as FAK, leads to decreased expression of MMPs and elevated TIMP-2, thereby impairing cancer cell migration and invasion
TIMP2↑,
TumCMig↓,
TumCI↓,
Sp1/3/4↓, Sp inhibition reduces cancer gene expression, inhibiting cancer cell growth.
TumCCA↑, It increases cell numbers in the G2/M phase, leading to cell cycle arrest.
DNAdam↑, causes DNA damage, thereby inhibiting the progression and invasion of cancer cells.

5582- BetA,    Targeting mitochondrial apoptosis by betulinic acid in human cancers
- Review, Var, NA
Apoptosis↑, BA has been reported to induce apoptosis via a direct effect on mitochondria.
MMP↓, BA triggered loss of mitochondrial membrane potential
Cyt‑c↑, BA was shown to trigger cytochrome c in a permeability transition pore-dependent
ROS↑, Generation of ROS upon treatment with BA has been reported to be involved in initiating mitochondrial membrane permeabilization [15].
NF-kB↑, These findings indicate that the activation of NF-kB by BA promotes BA-induced apoptosis in a cell type- specific manner.
angioG↓, antiangiogenic activity of BA was linked to its mitochondrial damaging effects [33]
mtDam↑,
TOP1↓, BA can inhibit the catalytic activity of topoisomerase I
selectivity↑, normal cells of different origin have been reported to be much more resistant to BA than cancer cells pointing to some tumor selectivity [19,25,44,45].
ChemoSen↑, his suggests that BA can be used as a sensitizer in combination regimens to enhance the efficacy of anticancer therapy or to bypass some forms of drug resistance
TumCG↓, BA also suppressed tumor growth in several animal models of human cancer.
chemoPv↑, BA has also been reported to act as a chemopreventive agent.
RadioS↑, BA may also be used in combination protocols to enhance its antitumor activity, for example with chemo- or radiotherapy or with the death receptor ligand TRAIL. B

2727- BetA,    Betulinic acid in the treatment of breast cancer: Application and mechanism progress
- Review, BC, NA
mt-ROS↑, Its mechanisms mainly include inducing mitochondrial oxidative stress, regulating specific protein (Sp) transcription factors, inhibiting breast cancer metastasis, inhibiting glucose metabolism and NF-κB pathway.
Sp1/3/4↓, By triggering the degradation of Sp1, Sp3, and Sp4, betulinic acid reduces the transcriptional activity of these factors
TumMeta↓,
GlucoseCon↓,
NF-kB↓,
ChemoSen↑, BA can also increase the sensitivity of breast cancer cells to other chemotherapy drugs such as paclitaxel and reduce its toxic side effects.
chemoP↑,
m-Apoptosis↑, variety of mechanisms, including inducing mitochondrial apoptosis, inhibiting topoisomerase
TOP1↓, betulinic acid may inhibit the ability of topoisomerase I or II to properly cleave and re-ligate DNA strands.

2729- BetA,    Betulinic acid in the treatment of tumour diseases: Application and research progress
- Review, Var, NA
ChemoSen↑, Betulinic acid can increase the sensitivity of cancer cells to other chemotherapy drugs
mt-ROS↑, BA has antitumour activity, and its mechanisms of action mainly include the induction of mitochondrial oxidative stress
STAT3↓, inhibition of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 and nuclear factor-κB signalling pathways.
NF-kB↓,
selectivity↑, A main advantage of BA and its derivatives is that they are cytotoxic to different human tumour cells, while cytotoxicity is much lower in normal cells.
*toxicity↓, It can kill cancer cells but has no obvious effect on normal cells and is also nontoxic to other organs in xenograft mice at a dose of 500 mg/kg
eff↑, BA combined with chemotherapy drugs, such as platinum and mithramycin A, can induce apoptosis in tumour cells
GRP78/BiP↑, In animal xenograft tumour models, BA enhanced the expression of glucose-regulated protein 78 (GRP78)
MMP2↓, reduced the levels of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), such as MMP-2 and MMP-9, in lung metastatic lesions of breast cancer, indicating that BA can reduce the invasiveness of breast cancer in vivo and block epithelial mesenchymal transformation (EMT
P90RSK↓,
TumCI↓,
EMT↓,
MALAT1↓, MALAT1, a lncRNA, was downregulated in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells treated with BA in vivo,
Glycolysis↓, Suppressing aerobic glycolysis of cancer cells by GRP78/β-Catenin/c-Myc signalling pathways
AMPK↑, activating AMPK signaling pathway
Sp1/3/4↓, inhibiting Sp1. BA at 20 mg/kg/d, the tumour volume and weight were significantly reduced, and the expression levels of Sp1, Sp3, and Sp4 in tumour tissues were lower than those in control mouse tissues
Hif1a↓, Suppressing the hypoxia-induced accumulation of HIF-1α and expression of HIF target genes
angioG↓, PC3: Having anti-angiogenesis effect
NF-kB↑, LNCaP, DU145 — Inducing apoptosis and NF-κB pathway
NF-kB↓, U266 — Inhibiting NF-κB pathway.
MMP↓, BA produces ROS and reduces mitochondrial membrane potential; the mitochondrial permeability transition pore of the mitochondrial membrane plays an important role in apoptosis signal transduction.
Cyt‑c↑, Mitochondria release cytochrome C and increase the levels of Caspase-9 and Caspase-3, inducing cell apoptosis.
Casp9↑,
Casp3↑,
RadioS↑, BA could be a promising drug for increasing radiosensitization in oral squamous cell carcinoma radiotherapy.
PERK↑, BA treatment increased the activation of the protein kinase RNA-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase (PERK)/C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP) apoptosis pathway and decreased the expression of Sp1.
CHOP↑,
*toxicity↓, BA at a concentration of 50 μg/ml did not inhibit the growth of normal peripheral blood lymphocytes, indicating that the toxicity of BA was at least 1000 times less than that of doxorubicin

2737- BetA,    Multiple molecular targets in breast cancer therapy by betulinic acid
- Review, Var, NA
TumCP↓, Betulinic acid (BA), a pipeline anticancer drug, exerts anti-proliferative effects on breast cancer cells is mainly through inhibition of cyclin and topoisomerase expression, leading to cell cycle arrest.
Cyc↓,
TOP1↓,
TumCCA↑,
angioG↓, anti-angiogenesis effect by inhibiting the expression of transcription factor nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB), specificity protein (Sp) transcription factors, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling.
NF-kB↓, Inhibition of NF-kB signaling pathway
Sp1/3/4↓,
VEGF↓,
MMPs↓, inhibiting the expression of matrix metalloproteases
ChemoSen↑, Synergistically interactions of BA with other chemotherapeutics are also described in the literature.
eff↑, BA is highly lipid soluble [74,75], and it readily passes through membranes, including plasma and mitochondrial membranes. BA acts directly on mitochondria
MMP↓, decreases mitochondrial outer membrane potential (MOMP), leading to increased outer membrane permeability, generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS),
ROS↑,
Bcl-2↓, reducing expression of anti-apoptotic proteins Bcl-2, Bcl-XL and Mcl-1
Bcl-xL↓,
Mcl-1↓,
lipid-P↑, BA inhibits the growth of breast cancer cells via lipid peroxidation resulting from the generation of ROS
RadioS↑, The cytotoxicity effect of BA on glioblastoma cells is not strong; however, some studies indicate that the combination of BA and radiotherapy could represent an advancement in treatment of glioblastoma [
eff↑, BA and thymoquinone inhibit MDR and induce cell death in MCF-7 breast cancer cells by suppressing BCRP [

2735- BetA,    Betulinic acid as apoptosis activator: Molecular mechanisms, mathematical modeling and chemical modifications
- Review, Var, NA
mt-Apoptosis↑, BA and analogues (BAs) have been known to exhibit potential antitumor action via provoking the mitochondrial pathway of apoptosis
Casp↑, cytosolic caspase activation
p38↑, inhibition of pro-apoptotic p38, MAPK and SAP/JNK kinases [8],
MAPK↓,
JNK↓,
VEGF↓, decreased expression of pro-apoptotic proteins and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)
AIF↑, BA was recognized to trigger the process of apoptosis in human metastatic melanoma cells (Me-45) by releasing apoptosis inducing factor (AIF) and cytochrome c (Cyt C) through mitochondrial membrane
Cyt‑c↑,
ROS↑, BA also stimulates the increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that is considered a stress factor involved in initiating mitochondrial membrane permeabilization
Ca+2↑, Moreover, the calcium overload and thereby ATP depletion are other stress factors causing enhanced inner mitochondrial membrane permeability via nonspecific pores formation
ATP↓,
NF-kB↓, BA has also known to be involved in activation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) that is responsible for apoptosis induction in variety of cancer cells
ATF3↓, According to Zhang et al. [14], BA stimulates apoptosis through the suppression of cyclic AMP-dependent transcription factor ATF-3 and NF-κB pathways and downregulation of p53 gene.
TOP1↓, inhibition of topoisomerases
VEGF↓, ecreased expression of vascular endothelial growth (VEGF) and the anti-apoptotic protein surviving in LNCaP prostate cancer cells.
survivin↓,
Sp1/3/4↓, selective proteasome-dependent targeted degradation of transcription factors specificity proteins (Sp1, Sp3, and Sp4), which generally regulate VEGF and survivin expression and highly over-expressed in tumor conditions
MMP↓, perturbed mitochondrial membrane potential
ChemoSen↑, BA can support as sensitizer in combination therapy to enhance the anticancer effects with minimum side effects.
selectivity↑, Normal human fibroblasts [41], peripheral blood lymphoblasts [41], melanocytes [32] and astrocytes [30] were found to be resistant to BA in vitro
BioAv↓, The clinical use of BA is seriously challenging due to high hydrophobicity which subsequently causes poor bioavailability
BioAv↑, A BA-loaded oil-in-water nanoemulsion was developed using phospholipase-catalyzed modified phosphatidylcholine as emulsifier in an ultrasonicator [120].
BioAv↑, Aqueous solubility of BA may also be increased through grinding with hydrophilic polymers (polyethylene glycol, polyvinylpyrrolidone, arabinogalactan) [121,122].
BioAv↑, Subsequently, for further improvement in biocompatibility, a technique of nanotube coating was employed with four biopolymers i.e. polyethylene glycol (PEG), chitosan, tween 20 and tween 80.
BioAv↑, Similarly, BA-coated silver nanoparticles displayed an improved antiproliferative and antimigratory activity, particularly against melanoma cells (A375: murine melanoma cells)

2732- BetA,  Chemo,    Betulinic acid chemosensitizes breast cancer by triggering ER stress-mediated apoptosis by directly targeting GRP78
- in-vitro, BC, MCF-7 - in-vitro, BC, MDA-MB-231 - in-vitro, Nor, MCF10
ChemoSen↑, Here in, we found that BA has synergistic effects with taxol to induce breast cancer cells G2/M checkpoint arrest and apoptosis induction,
selectivity↑, but had little cytotoxicity effects on normal mammary epithelial cells.
GRP78/BiP↑, identified glucose-regulated protein 78 (GRP78) as the direct interacting target of BA.
ER Stress↑, BA administration significantly elevated GRP78-mediated endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and resulted in the activation of protein kinase R-like ER kinase (PERK)/eukaryotic initiation factor 2a/CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein homologous protein apopt
PERK↑,
Ca+2↑, We found that BA significantly elevated intracellular free calcium concentration
Cyt‑c↑, increased Cytochrome c and Bax, and the downregulation of Bcl-2
BAX↑,
Bcl-2↓,

2731- BetA,    Betulinic Acid for Glioblastoma Treatment: Reality, Challenges and Perspectives
- Review, GBM, NA - Review, Park, NA - Review, AD, NA
BBB↑, Notably, its ability to cross the blood–brain barrier addresses a significant challenge in treating neurological pathologies.
*GSH↑, BA can also dramatically reduce catalepsy and stride length, while increasing the brain’s dopamine content, glutathione activity, and catalase activity in hemiparkinsonian rats
*Catalase↑,
*motorD↑,
*neuroP↑, in Alzheimer’s disease rat models, it can improve neurobehavioral impairments . BA has exhibited great neuroprotective properties.
*cognitive↑, BA improves cognitive ability and neurotransmitter levels, and protects from brain damage by lowering reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels
*ROS↓,
*antiOx↑, enhancing brain tissue’s antioxidant capacity, and preventing the release of inflammatory cytokines
*Inflam↓,
MMP↓, BA can decrease the mitochondrial outer membrane potential (MOMP)
STAT3↓, The compound can inhibit the signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) 3 signaling pathways, involved in differentiation, proliferation, apoptosis, metastasis formation, angiogenesis, and metabolism, and the NF-kB signaling pathway,
NF-kB↓,
Sp1/3/4↓, BA has shown an ability to control cancer growth through the modulation of Sp transcription factors, inhibit DNA topoisomerase
TOP1↓,
EMT↓, inhibit the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT)
Hif1a↓, BA has also been associated with an antiangiogenic response under hypoxia conditions, through the STAT3/hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1α/vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling pathway
VEGF↓,
ChemoSen↑, BA has shown great potential as an adjuvant to therapy since its use combined with standard treatment of chemotherapy and irradiation can enhance their cytotoxic effect on cancer cells
RadioS↑,
BioAv↓, Despite having great potential as a therapeutic agent, it is hard for BA to fulfill the requirements for adequate water solubility, maintaining both significant cytotoxicity and selectivity for tumor cells.


Showing Research Papers: 1 to 13 of 13

* indicates research on normal cells as opposed to diseased cells
Total Research Paper Matches: 13

Pathway results for Effect on Cancer / Diseased Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress ⓘ

ATF3↓, 1,   lipid-P↑, 1,   ROS↑, 7,   mt-ROS↑, 2,  

Mitochondria & Bioenergetics ⓘ

AIF↑, 2,   ATP↓, 1,   MMP↓, 8,   mtDam↑, 1,  

Core Metabolism/Glycolysis ⓘ

AMPK↑, 1,   GlucoseCon↓, 1,   Glycolysis↓, 1,  

Cell Death ⓘ

Apoptosis↑, 2,   m-Apoptosis↑, 1,   mt-Apoptosis↑, 1,   BAX↑, 2,   Bcl-2↓, 3,   Bcl-xL↓, 1,   Casp↑, 1,   Casp3↑, 2,   cl‑Casp3↑, 1,   Casp9↑, 2,   Cyt‑c↑, 7,   JNK↓, 1,   MAPK↓, 1,   MAPK↑, 1,   Mcl-1↓, 1,   MOMP↓, 1,   p38↑, 1,   survivin↓, 1,  

Kinase & Signal Transduction ⓘ

Sp1/3/4↓, 7,  

Transcription & Epigenetics ⓘ

tumCV↓, 1,  

Protein Folding & ER Stress ⓘ

CHOP↑, 2,   ER Stress↑, 2,   GRP78/BiP?, 1,   GRP78/BiP↓, 1,   GRP78/BiP↑, 2,   PERK↑, 3,  

Autophagy & Lysosomes ⓘ

SESN2↑, 1,  

DNA Damage & Repair ⓘ

CHK1↓, 1,   DNAdam↑, 2,  

Cell Cycle & Senescence ⓘ

Cyc↓, 1,   TumCCA↑, 2,  

Proliferation, Differentiation & Cell State ⓘ

CSCs↓, 1,   EMT↓, 2,   OCT4↓, 1,   P90RSK↓, 1,   STAT3↓, 3,   TOP1↓, 7,   TumCG↓, 1,  

Migration ⓘ

Ca+2↑, 2,   FAK↓, 1,   MALAT1↓, 1,   MMP2↓, 1,   MMPs↓, 1,   SMAD2↓, 1,   SMAD3↓, 1,   TGF-β↓, 1,   TIMP2↑, 1,   TumCI↓, 2,   TumCMig↓, 1,   TumCP↓, 1,   TumMeta↓, 1,  

Angiogenesis & Vasculature ⓘ

angioG↓, 4,   Hif1a↓, 2,   VEGF↓, 5,  

Barriers & Transport ⓘ

BBB↑, 1,  

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling ⓘ

NF-kB↓, 7,   NF-kB↑, 3,  

Drug Metabolism & Resistance ⓘ

BioAv↓, 3,   BioAv↑, 5,   ChemoSen↑, 13,   eff↑, 4,   RadioS↑, 6,   selectivity↑, 7,  

Functional Outcomes ⓘ

chemoP↑, 1,   chemoPv↑, 2,  
Total Targets: 76

Pathway results for Effect on Normal Cells:


Redox & Oxidative Stress ⓘ

antiOx↑, 2,   Catalase↑, 1,   GSH↑, 1,   NRF2↑, 1,   ROS↓, 1,  

Immune & Inflammatory Signaling ⓘ

COX2↓, 1,   Inflam↓, 3,   NF-kB↓, 1,  

Functional Outcomes ⓘ

cognitive↑, 1,   motorD↑, 1,   neuroP↑, 1,   toxicity↓, 3,  
Total Targets: 12

Scientific Paper Hit Count for: ChemoSen, chemo-sensitization
13 Betulinic acid
1 Gemcitabine (Gemzar)
1 Chemotherapy
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#:1106  State#:%  Dir#:%
  wNotes=on  sortOrder:rid,rpid

 

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