Glioblastoma Cancer Stem Cell Sensitivity Towards Natural Health Products Piper longum and Camellia sinensis
Standing
Undergraduate
Type of Proposal
Oral Research Presentation
Challenges Theme
Open Challenge
Faculty Sponsor
Dr. Siyaram Pandey
Proposal
Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most aggressive and common form of brain cancer, meanwhile Neuroblastoma (NB) is the most prevalent infancy tumour. Standard chemotherapies have limited effectiveness and are cytotoxic to the body due to non-specific targeting of cells and impose severe adverse side effects. In addition to non-effective treatments, NB and GBM have self-renewing stem cell-like cells referred to as cancer stem cells (CSCs) responsible for drug resistance, malignancy, and relapse. Alternatively, natural health products Piper longum (LPE) and Camellia sinensis (STE) have shown promising anti-cancer activity in U-87 Mg GBM and SH-SY5Y NB cells. In-vitro and in-vivo studies indicate LPE and STE's ability to selectively induce apoptosis in cancer cells and enhance the effects of standard chemotherapies. Current research analyzes STE's and LPE's capability of diminishing GBM and NB CSC populations. A population of GBM stem cells was identified with stem cell biomarkers CD44 and ALDH. Cells were treated with varying concentration of STE and LPE for short-term (48 hours) and long-term (96 hours) where stem cells were eradicated. Using identical biomarkers, neuroblastoma CSCs are being researched in a similar fashion. Future goals involve flow cytometry to provide quantitative analysis and resistance assays to observe whether NHPs can permanently eliminate CSCs. Demonstrating the efficacy of STE and LPE against CSCs could provide a selective and non-toxic therapeutic treatment against cancer relapse while supporting the UN SDGs of good health and wellbeing, reduced inequalities, and life on land as NHPs are affordable, globally available, and sustainably produced. Keywords: Apoptosis; Brain tumor; Cancer; Cancer Stem Cells; Chemotherapy; Brain tumor, Glioblastoma, Green Tea; Long Pepper; Natural Health Products; Neuroblastoma; Stem Cell
Grand Challenges
Viable, Healthy and Safe Communities
Glioblastoma Cancer Stem Cell Sensitivity Towards Natural Health Products Piper longum and Camellia sinensis
Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most aggressive and common form of brain cancer, meanwhile Neuroblastoma (NB) is the most prevalent infancy tumour. Standard chemotherapies have limited effectiveness and are cytotoxic to the body due to non-specific targeting of cells and impose severe adverse side effects. In addition to non-effective treatments, NB and GBM have self-renewing stem cell-like cells referred to as cancer stem cells (CSCs) responsible for drug resistance, malignancy, and relapse. Alternatively, natural health products Piper longum (LPE) and Camellia sinensis (STE) have shown promising anti-cancer activity in U-87 Mg GBM and SH-SY5Y NB cells. In-vitro and in-vivo studies indicate LPE and STE's ability to selectively induce apoptosis in cancer cells and enhance the effects of standard chemotherapies. Current research analyzes STE's and LPE's capability of diminishing GBM and NB CSC populations. A population of GBM stem cells was identified with stem cell biomarkers CD44 and ALDH. Cells were treated with varying concentration of STE and LPE for short-term (48 hours) and long-term (96 hours) where stem cells were eradicated. Using identical biomarkers, neuroblastoma CSCs are being researched in a similar fashion. Future goals involve flow cytometry to provide quantitative analysis and resistance assays to observe whether NHPs can permanently eliminate CSCs. Demonstrating the efficacy of STE and LPE against CSCs could provide a selective and non-toxic therapeutic treatment against cancer relapse while supporting the UN SDGs of good health and wellbeing, reduced inequalities, and life on land as NHPs are affordable, globally available, and sustainably produced. Keywords: Apoptosis; Brain tumor; Cancer; Cancer Stem Cells; Chemotherapy; Brain tumor, Glioblastoma, Green Tea; Long Pepper; Natural Health Products; Neuroblastoma; Stem Cell