Title:The Effect of Lycopene on the PI3K/Akt Signalling Pathway in Prostate Cancer
VOLUME: 14 ISSUE: 6
Author(s):Jiezhong Chen, Adam O’Donoghue, Yi-Fu Deng, Bing Zhang, Fanning Kent and Tim O’Hare
Affiliation:School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072.
Keywords:Angiogenesis, apoptosis, Bcl-2, IGF-1, Lycopene, Ras.
Abstract:Prostate cancer is common in men with very high mortality which is one of leading causes of cancer-related deaths in men.
The main treatment approaches for metastasized prostate cancer are androgen deprivation and chemotherapeutic agents. Although there
are initial responses to castration, the resistance to the treatment will eventually occur, leading to castration-resistant prostate cancer. The
common chemotherapeutic agents for the treatment of prostate cancer are docetaxel and taxane but outcomes of using these drugs have
not been satisfactory. Therefore, it is necessary to find better treatment approaches for prostate cancer and to search for compounds that
are effective in prostate cancer prevention. Lycopene extracted from tomato and other fruits or plants such as Gac, watermelon, pink
grapefruit, pink guava, red carrot and papaya has been shown to be effective on prostate cancer prevention and treatment. The advantage
of the application of lycopene for its anti-prostate cancer activity is that lycopene can reach much higher concentration in prostate tissue
than other tissues. In this review, the effect of lycopene on PI3K/Akt pathway is summarised, which could be one of major mechanisms
for anti-cancer activity of lycopene.
