Novel Wnt and Notch Signaling Natural Inhibitors as Double Edged Sword Against Cancer War: An approach Towards Computer Based Drug Design

Abstract

Cancer is a group of disease characterized by the uncontrolled growth and spread of abnormal cells which may lead to death. According to a report by GLOBOCAN the number of new cancer cases would increase to 19.3 million by 2025 worldwide. Thus globally cancer has become a big threat to human beings, among various diseases. Carcinogen induced deregulation in cellular signaling pathway, may leads to the cancer development. Chemotherapy is an important mode of cancer treatment that used to cure and improve the patient’s quality of life [1]. At the same time chemotherapy is known to induce drug resistance and toxicity that hurdles the improvement of overall response and survival of cancer patients. Many cancers contain a sub-population of self-renewing and expanding stem cells known as cancer stem cells (CSCs). These are associated with chemotherapeutic resistant leading to tumor recurrence and poor patient prognosis. Acquired drug resistance renders subsequent anticancer therapy effectiveness leading to tumor recurrence and progression. Hence it is urgency of time to identify effective and safer anticancer agents, which can be found in natural agents. The use of natural products is promising because they target multiple signaling pathways and have minimal toxicity compared to conventional chemotherapeutics. Malignancy transformation and progression are multistage progress involved gene alterations and multi signaling pathways. In this regard herbal products may do a lot. Several natural compounds viz., vinblastine, etoposide, paclitaxel, camptothecin, bleomycin, and doxorubicin are known to prevent the occurrence and/or spread of various cancers by targeting numerous key elements in intracellular signaling network involved in carcinogenesis and is being investigated in clinical trials.