Chemotherapeutic potential of hesperetin for cancer treatment, with mechanistic insights: A comprehensive review

Md Sohel; Habiba Sultana; Tayeba Sultana; Md Al Amin; Suraiya Aktar; Md Chayan Ali; Zahed Bin Rahim; Md Arju Hossain; Abdullah Al Mamun; Mohammad Nurul Amin; Raju Dash

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e08815

Chemotherapeutic potential of hesperetin for cancer treatment, with mechanistic insights: A comprehensive review

Heliyon. 2022 Jan 23;8(1):e08815. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e08815. eCollection 2022 Jan.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Santosh, Tangail 1902, Bangladesh.
² Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Santosh, Tangail 1902, Bangladesh.
³ Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Rajshahi University, Rajshahi, Bangladesh.
⁴ Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Islamic University, Kushtia 7003, Bangladesh.
⁵ Department of Pharmacy, BGC Trust University Bangladesh, Chittagong 4381, Bangladesh.
⁶ Department of Pharmacy, Atish Dipankar University of Science and Technology, Dhaka 1230, Bangladesh.
⁷ Pratyasha Health Biomedical Research Center, Dhaka 1230 Bangladesh.
⁸ Department of Anatomy, Dongguk University College of Medicine, Gyeongju 38066, Republic of Korea.

Abstract

Background: Cancer has become a significant concern in the medical sector with increasing disease complexity. Although some available conventional treatments are still a blessing for cancer patients, short-and long-term adverse effects and poor efficiency make it more difficult to treat cancer patients, demonstrating the need for new potent and selective anticancer drugs. In search of potent anticancer agents, naturally occurring compounds have always been admired due to their structural diversity, where Hesperetin (HSP) may be one of the potent candidates.

Purpose: We aimed to summarize all sources, pharmacological properties, anticancer activities of HSP against numerous cancers types through targeting multiple pathological processes, mechanism of HSP on sensitizing the current anti-cancer agents and other phytochemicals, overcoming resistance pattern and determining absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicity (ADME/Tox).

Methods: Information was retrieved from PubMed, Science Direct, and Google Scholar based on some key points like Hesperetin, cancer name, anticancer resistance, nanoformulation, and ADME/Tox was determined by in silico approaches.

Result: HSP is a phytoestrogen present in citrus fruits in a high concentration (several hundred mg/kg) and exhibited anti-cancer activities through interfering at several pathways. HSP can suppress tumor formation by targeting several cellular proteins such as cell cycle regulatory, apoptosis, metastatic, tyrosine kinase, growth factor receptor, estrogen metabolism, and antioxidant-related protein.HSP has shown remarkable synergistic properties in combination therapy and has been reported to overcome multidrug cancer resistance drugs, leading to an improved defensive mechanism. These anticancer activities of HSP may be due to proper structural chemistry.

Conclusion: Overall, HSP showed potential anticancer activities against all cancer and possess better pharmacokinetic properties. So this phytochemical alone or combination with other agents can be an effective alternative drug for cancer treatment.

Keywords: ADME/Tox; Anticancer agents; Cancer; Hesperetin.

Publication types

Review