Title:The Immunomodulatory Potential of Selected Bioactive Plant-Based Compounds in Breast Cancer: A Review
VOLUME: 17 ISSUE: 6
Author(s):Yusha`u Shu`aibu Baraya, Kah Keng Wong and Nik Soriani Yaacob
Affiliation:1Department of Chemical Pathology, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, 16150 Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, 2Department of Immunology, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, 16150 Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Department of Chemical Pathology, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, 16150 Kubang Kerian, Kelantan
Keywords:Breast cancer, chemoresistance, chemotherapy, immunomodulators, natural compounds, side effects.
Abstract:Breast cancer has continued to cause high cancer death rates among women worldwide. The use of
plants’ natural products in breast cancer treatment has received more attention in recent years due to their
potentially wider safety margin and the potential to complement conventional chemotherapeutic drugs. Plantbased
products have demonstrated anticancer potential through different biological pathways including
modulation of the immune system. Immunomodulatory properties of medicinal plants have been shown to
mitigate breast cancer cell growth. Different immune cell types participate in this process especially cytotoxic T
cells and natural killer cells, and cytokines including chemokines and tumor necrosis factor-α. Medicinal plants
such as Glycyrrhiza glabra, Uncaria tomentosa, Camellia sinensis, Panax ginseng, Prunus armenaica (apricot),
Allium sativum, Arctium lappa and Curcuma longa were reported to hold strong potential in breast cancer treatment
in various parts of the world. Interestingly, research findings have shown that these plants possess bioactive
immunomodulators as their main constituents producing the anticancer effects. These immunomodulatory
compounds include ajoene, arctigenin, β-carotene, curcumin, epigallocatechin-3-gallate, ginsan, glabridin and
quinic acid. In this review, we discussed the ability of these eight immunomodulators in regulating the immune
system potentially applicable in breast cancer treatment via anti-inflammatory (curcumin, arctigenin, glabridin
and ajoene) and lymphocytes activation (β-carotene, epigallocatechin-3-gallate, quinic acid and ginsan)
properties, as well as future research direction in their use for breast cancer treatment.
