Bright Spots in The Darkness of Cancer: A Review of Starfishes-Derived Compounds and Their Anti-Tumor Action

Abstract

The fight against cancer represents a great challenge for researchers and, for this reason, the search for new promising drugs to improve cancer treatments has become inevitable. Oceans, due to their wide diversity of marine species and environmental conditions have proven to be precious sources of potential natural drugs with active properties. As an example, in this context several studies performed on sponges, tunicates, mollusks, and soft corals have brought evidence of the interesting biological activities of the molecules derived from these species. Also, echinoderms constitute an important phylum, whose members produce a huge number of compounds with diverse biological activities. In particular, this review is the first attempt to summarize the knowledge about starfishes and their secondary metabolites that exhibited a significant anticancer effect against different human tumor cell lines. For each species of starfish, the extracted molecules, their effects, and mechanisms of action are described.

Marine Animal-Derived Compounds and Autophagy Modulation in Breast Cancer Cells

“…Thus, to cite just a few examples, anticancer compounds have been found among the primary and secondary metabolites of starfishes and Mediterranean ascidians [20,21], and extracts or isolated molecules obtained from marine invertebrates have been proven to exert a modulatory effect on collective cell migration, a process at the basis of different biological events such as neoplastic cell metastasization and wound repair [22]. Chemicals with histone deacetylase inhibitory properties, whose wide range of potential biomedical applications is generally acknowledged, have also been extracted and identified in preparations from marine invertebrates [23].…”

Asterosaponins: Structures, Taxonomic Distribution, Biogenesis and Biological Activities

“…The aim of this short part of our review is an attempt to focus on more promising types of asterosaponin activities and on such directions of further investigation, which, in our opinion, could be prospective to find new useful properties and applications. Recently, several reviews [12,111,112] were published about the biological activities of polar steroids from starfish, including asterosaponins.…”

“…Antarcticosides A-C (137-139), containing hexasaccharide carbohydrate chains with two branches (type ii, Figure 4) from a starfish of the family Echinasteridae collected in the Antarctic Sea, was cytotoxic against human bronchopulmunary non-small-cell lung carcinoma at IC 50 less than 3.3 mg/mL [77]. A list of asterosaponins that showed promising activity against tumor cells is given in Reference [111]. Some interesting examples of the anticancer action of asterosaponins were also reported in the review of Katanaev et al [112].…”

Collective Locomotion of Human Cells, Wound Healing and Their Control by Extracts and Isolated Compounds from Marine Invertebrates

“…The phylum Echinodermata, gathering invertebrates that display a radial symmetry, incorporates about 6000 living marine species around the globe. In recent years, echinoderms have attracted much attention as producers of biomolecules with promising anti-microbial, anti-protozoal, anti-fungal, and anticancer properties, making them potential candidates for drug development and future therapeutic applications [165][166][167][168]. Astropecten indicus (Döderlein, 1888; Asteroidea, Paxillosida: Astropectinidae; Figure 23), also called comb star or sand star, is a starfish that is distributed in the tropical environments of the Indo-Pacific area, and in particular of the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Thailand, Gulf of Mannar, and Palk Bay region.…”