Apigenin and cancer chemoprevention: Progress, potential and promise (Review)

Abstract

Abstract. Cancer is one of the major public health burdens in the United States and in other developed countries, causing approximately 7 million deaths every year worldwide. Cancer rates vary dramatically in different regions and populations around the globe, especially between developing and developed nations. Changes in cancer prevalence patterns occur within regions as their populations age or become progressively urbanized. Migration has also contributed to such variations as changes in dietary habits influence cancer rates. These epidemiologic findings strongly suggest that cancer rates are influenced by environmental factors including diet, which is largely preventable. Approaches to prevent cancer include overlapping strategies viz. chemoprevention or dietary cancer prevention. Chemoprevention aims at prevention or reversal of the initiation phase of carcinogenesis or arrest at progression of carcinogenesis through the administration of naturally occurring constituents or pharmacological agents. Cancer prevention through diet may be largely achievable by increased consumption of fruits and vegetables. Considerable attention has been devoted to identifying plant-derived dietary agents which could be developed as promising chemopreventives. One such agent is apigenin. A naturally occurring plant flavone (4', 5, 7,-trihydroxyflavone) abundantly present in common fruits and vegetables including parsley, onions, oranges, tea, chamomile, wheat sprouts and some seasonings. Apigenin has been shown to possess remarkable anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anti-carcinogenic properties. In the last few years, significant progress has been made in studying the biological effects of apigenin at cellular and molecular levels. This review examines the cancer chemopreventive effects of apigenin in an organ-specificity format, evaluating its limitations and its considerable potential for development as a cancer chemopreventive agent.

Apigenin Induces Apoptosis and Blocks Growth of Medroxyprogesterone Acetate-Dependent BT-474 Xenograft Tumors

“…Apigenin blocked MPAinduced proliferation, reducing levels of tumor cell proliferation to those observed in controls. This is consistent with previous studies, and a number of mechanisms by which apigenin could inhibit proliferation have been proposed [19,42,43].…”

Activating Transcription Factor 3-mediated Chemo-intervention with Cancer Chemokines in a Noncanonical Pathway under Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress

“…Instead, ATF3-recuited HDAC1 via direct interaction mediated chromatin remodeling and led to chemokine suppression. Flavones including apigenin have been shown to be associated with the anti-inflammatory activity of dietary herbal extracts from fruits and vegetables (23,24). Although the link of apigenin to anti-inflammatory action that is usually investigated is the NF-B-linked signal, the results of the present study suggest EGR-1 as a new target of intervention of inflammation-promoted cancers.…”

“…Dietary flavonoids, which comprise the most common group of plant polyphenols, have anti-inflammatory or anticancer effects in various disease models, including gastrointestinal cancers (23,24). Apigenin, one of the most common flavonoids, is widely distributed in fruits and vegetables and is particularly abundant in parsley, celery, garlic, and Chinese cabbage (25,26).…”

Fractionation and Identification of Antioxidant Compounds from Bran of Thai Black Rice cv. Riceberry

“…The fractionation by column chromatography could enhance the ability to identify chemical components in such complex rice bran extracts. [8], apigenin has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anticancer activities [9].…”