Damnacanthal, an anthraquinone compound, is isolated from the roots of Morinda citrifolia L.(noni), which has been used for traditional therapy in several chronic diseases including cancer. Although noni has been consumed for a long time in Asian and Polynesian countries, the molecular mechanisms by which it exerts several benefits are starting to emerge. In this report, we examined systematic approaches on the cancer suppressing capability of damnacanthal in colorectal tumorigenesis. Damnacanthal exhibits cell growth arrest as well as caspase activity induction in colorectal cancer cells. We also examined several potential target proteins and found that the pro-apoptotic protein Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory activated gene-1 (NAG-1) is highly induced. Subsequently, we have found that damnacanthal also enhances transcription factor C/ EBPβ, which controls NAG-1 transcriptional activity. Blocking of C/EBPβ by shRNA results in the reduction of NAG-1 expression as well as caspase activity in the presence of damnacanthal. Taken together, these results indicate that damnacanthal increases anti-tumorigenic activity in human colorectal cancer cells, and C/EBPβ plays a role in damnacanthal-induced NAG-1 expression.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.