Title : Quercetin in cancer treatment and its potential side effects
Abstract:
Each cell in the human body is essential since it maintains homeostasis and performs several functions, including growth and development. Some lifestyle choices, such as tobacco use, alcohol use, ultraviolet exposure, etc., are well known to increase the risk of cancer development. Different plant components include a phenolic chemical known as flavonoid. Quercetin, a flavone possessing a chromone structure, exhibits anti-cancer properties. Quercetin exerts its anticancer actions by inhibiting many dysregulated signaling pathways that induce death in cancer cells. There are several signaling pathways that quercetin can change. They are the Hedgehog pathway, Akt, NF-κB, a mutant form of p53 that has been turned down, JAK/STAT, G1 phase arrest, Wnt/β-Catenin, and MAPK. Quercetin has drawbacks such as hydrophobicity, first-pass metabolism, and instability in the gastrointestinal system, which hinder its acceptance in the pharmaceutical sector. One way to get around these problems in the future is to use bio-nanomaterials like chitosan, PLGA, liposomes, and silk fibroin as carriers to make quercetin more specific to its target. Quercetin, a phytochemical, possesses a potentially effective molecular mode of action against cancers through diverse mechanisms, all with minimal or no adverse effects. We expect plant-based materials to play a more significant role in cancer therapy.
