Cryptotanshinone

1 Salvia sp.

Cryptotanshinone is a potent STAT3 inhibitor with IC50 of 4.6 μM, and inhibits STAT3 Tyr705 phosphorylation in DU145 prostate cancer cells.

In Vitro:Cryptotanshinone significantly inhibits STAT3-dependent luciferase activity, the STAT3 Tyr705 phosphorylation and the dimerization of STAT3, compared to tanshinone IIA which exhibits no activity. Cryptotanshinone (7 μM) dramatically blocks STAT3 Tyr705 phosphorylation but not STAT3 Ser727 phosphorylation in DU145 cells, and significantly inhibits JAK2 phosphorylation with IC50 of appr 5 μM without affecting the phosphorylation of upstream kinases c-Src and EGFR, suggesting the inhibition of STAT3 Tyr705 phosphorylation might due to a direct mechanism probably by binding to the SH2 domain of STAT3. Cryptotanshinone significantly inhibits the proliferation of DU145 prostate cancer cells harboring constitutively active STAT3 with GI50 of 7 μM by blocking STAT3 activity, which leads to the down-regulation of cyclin D1, Bcl-xL, and survivin, subsequently the accumulation in the G0-G1 phase. Cryptotanshinone exhibits less growth inhibitory effect on PC3, LNCaP and MDA-MB-468 cells[1]. Cryptotanshinone significantly attenuates the in vitro hormonal effects of DEX on ovaries, as indicated by a significant decrease in T and an increase in P levels in the culture medium. Cryptotanshinone significantly increases the levels of phosphorylated AKT2 and GSK3β in the DEX-treated ovaries[2]. Cotreatment with imatinib and Cryptotanshinone shows a significant synergistic killing effect in both imatinib sensitive and resistant CML cell lines, as well as primary CML cells[3].

In Vivo:Cryptotanshinone reverses the ovarian IR and significantly increases 2-deoxy-D-[1,2-3H]-glucose uptake in all examined tissues from the DEX-treated mice. Cryptotanshinone significantly reduces the ovulation rate and plasma E2 and P levels[2]. Cryptotanshinone administration significantly reduces the body weight and food intake of ob/ob mice (C57BL/6J-Lepob) and diet-induced obese (DIO) mice in a dose-dependent manner. Cryptotanshinone causes noticeably less fat in the adipose tissues, significant reductions of serum triglycerides and cholesterol levels, and 2.5- to 3-fold higher AMPK activity of the skeletal muscles than in the control mice. Oral administration of Cryptotanshinone at 600 mg/kg/day produces dramatic reductions in blood glucose levels of ob/ob mice (C57BL/6J-Lepob), db/db mice (C57BL/KsJ-Leprdb), and ZDF rats, which occur after 3 days and persist over the entirety of the monitoring period[4].

References:
[1]. Shin DS, et al. Cryptotanshinone inhibits constitutive signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 function through blocking the dimerization in DU145 prostate cancer cells. Cancer Res. 2009 Jan 1;69(1):193-202. [2]. Huang Y, et al. Cryptotanshinone reverses ovarian insulin resistance in mice through activation of insulin signaling and the regulation of glucose transporters and hormone synthesizing enzymes. Fertil Steril. 2014 Aug;102(2):589-596.e4. [3]. Ge Y, et al. Cryptotanshinone acts synergistically with imatinib to induce apoptosis of human chronic myeloid leukemia cells. Leuk Lymphoma. 2014 Jun 25:1-9. [4]. Kim EJ, et al. Antidiabetes and antiobesity effect of cryptotanshinone via activation of AMP-activated protein kinase. Mol Pharmacol. 2007 Jul;72(1):62-72. Epub 2007 Apr 11.

Cryptotanshinone reverses ovarian insulin resistance in mice through activation of insulin signaling and the regulation of glucose transporters and hormone synthesizing enzymes.[Pubmed:24973798]

Fertil Steril. 2014 Aug;102(2):589-596.e4.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of Cryptotanshinone (CRY), an active component of Chinese medicine, on ovarian androgen production, insulin resistance (IR), and glucose metabolism in mice. DESIGN: Animal model and in vitro tissue model. SETTING: University-affiliated laboratory. ANIMAL(S): Mice. INTERVENTION(S): Ovarian IR was induced by dexamethasone (DEX) in vivo. Animals were randomized to receive CRY treatment for 3 days or not. Ovulation rates, serum steroid levels, and glucose uptake in ovaries were quantified, and proteins in the phosphatidylinositol 3-hydroxy kinase pathway were measured. In vitro ovarian IR was also induced by DEX for 3 days. Ovarian steroid hormone secretion and glucose uptake were measured, and the hormone-synthesizing enzymes were determined by semiquantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Ovarian glucose uptake, in vivo ovulation rate, serum and culture medium steroid level, and molecular expression of phosphatidylinositol 3-hydroxy kinase and steroidogenic enzymes. RESULT(S): Dexamethasone significantly increased ovulation rates in vivo and increased T and E2 production and decreased ovarian glucose uptake in vivo and in vitro. Cryptotanshinone significantly reduced ovulation rates in vivo and decreased T and estrogen production in vitro. Cryptotanshinone attenuated the inhibition of DEX on AKT2 and suppressed the up-regulation of CYP11 and CYP17 expression by DEX. CONCLUSION(S): Cryptotanshinone reversed DEX-induced androgen excess and ovarian IR in mice through activation of insulin signaling and the regulation of glucose transporters and hormone-synthesizing enzymes. This suggests a potential role for CRY in treating the ovulatory dysfunction associated with PCOS.

Cryptotanshinone protects primary rat cortical neurons from glutamate-induced neurotoxicity via the activation of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt signaling pathway.[Pubmed:18936923]

Exp Brain Res. 2009 Feb;193(1):109-18.

Excitotoxicity contributes to neuronal death and is involved in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). In the present study, Cryptotanshinone, an active ingredient from a Chinese plant, Salvia miltiorrhiza, was investigated to assess its neuroprotective effects against glutamate-induced toxicity in primary culture of rat cortical neurons. Cryptotanshinone reversed glutamate-induced neuronal toxicity, which was characterized by decreased cell viability, increased lactate dehydrogenase release, neuronal DNA condensation, and the alteration of the expression of Bcl-2 family proteins. The neuroprotective effects of Cryptotanshinone could be blocked by LY294002 and wortmannin, two inhibitors of PI3K. The importance of the PI3K pathway was further confirmed by the activation of Akt and anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 by Cryptotanshinone in a PI3K-dependent manner. These results suggest that Cryptotanshinone protects primary cortical neurons from glutamate-induced neurotoxicity through the activation of PI3K/Akt pathway. Such neuroprotective effects may be of interest in AD and other neurodegenerative diseases.

Cryptotanshinone inhibits cyclooxygenase-2 enzyme activity but not its expression.[Pubmed:16989810]

Eur J Pharmacol. 2006 Nov 7;549(1-3):166-72.

Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) is a key enzyme that catalyzes the biosynthesis of prostaglandins from arachidonic acid and plays a critical role in some pathologies including inflammation, neurodegenerative diseases and cancer. Cryptotanshinone is a major constituent of tanshinones, which are extracted from the medicinal herb Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge, and has well-documented antioxidative and anti-inflammatory effects. This study confirmed the remarkable anti-inflammatory effect of Cryptotanshinone in the carrageenan-induced rat paw edema model. Since the action of Cryptotanshinone on COX-2 has not been previously described, in the present study, we further examined the effect of Cryptotanshinone on cyclooxygenase activity in the exogenous arachidonic acid-stimulated insect sf-9 cells, which highly express human COX-2 or human COX-1, and on cyclooxygenases expression in human U937 promonocytes stimulated by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) plus phorbolmyristate acetate (PMA). Cryptotanshinone reduced prostaglandin E2 synthesis and reactive oxygen species generation catalyzed by COX-2, without influencing COX-1 activity in cloned sf-9 cells. In PMA plus LPS-stimulated U937 cells, Cryptotanshinone had negligible effects on the expression of COX-1 and COX-2, at either a mRNA or protein level. These results demonstrate that the anti-inflammatory effect of Cryptotanshinone is directed against enzymatic activity of COX-2, not against the transcription or translation of the enzyme.

Cryptotanshinone induces ER stress-mediated apoptosis in HepG2 and MCF7 cells.[Pubmed:22113823]

Apoptosis. 2012 Mar;17(3):248-57.

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is a central organelle in eukaryotic cells that functions in protein synthesis and maturation, and also functions as a calcium storage organelle. Perturbation of ER functions leads to ER stress, which has been previously associated with a broad variety of diseases. ER stress is generally regarded as compensatory, but prolonged ER stress can activate apoptotic pathways in damaged cells. For this reason, pharmacological interventions that effectively enhance tumor death through ER stress have been the subject of a great deal of attention for anti-cancer therapy. Cryptotanshinone, the major active constituent isolated from the root of Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge, has been recently evaluated for its anti-cancer activity, but the molecular mechanisms underlying these activities remain poorly understood. In particular, it remains completely unknown as to whether or not Cryptotanshinone can induce ER stress. Herein, we identify Cryptotanshinone as a potent stimulator of ER stress, leading to apoptosis in many cancer cell lines, including HepG2 hepatoma and MCF7 breast carcinoma, and also demonstrate that mitogen-activated protein kinases function as mediators in this process. Reactive oxygen species generated by Cryptotanshinone have been shown to play a critical role in ER stress-induced apoptosis. Cryptotanshinone also evidenced sensitizing effects to a broad range of anti-cancer agents including Fas/Apo-1, TNF-alpha, cisplatin, etoposide or 5-FU through inducing ER stress, highlighting the therapeutic potential in the treatment of human hepatoma and breast cancer.

Cryptotanshinone suppresses androgen receptor-mediated growth in androgen dependent and castration resistant prostate cancer cells.[Pubmed:22154085]

Cancer Lett. 2012 Mar;316(1):11-22.

Androgen receptor (AR) is the major therapeutic target for the treatment of prostate cancer (PCa). Anti-androgens to reduce or prevent androgens binding to AR are widely used to suppress AR-mediated PCa growth; however, the androgen depletion therapy is only effective for a short period of time. Here we found a natural product/Chinese herbal medicine Cryptotanshinone (CTS), with a structure similar to dihydrotestosterone (DHT), can effectively inhibit the DHT-induced AR transactivation and prostate cancer cell growth. Our results indicated that 0.5 muM CTS effectively suppresses the growth of AR-positive PCa cells, but has little effect on AR negative PC-3 cells and non-malignant prostate epithelial cells. Furthermore, our data indicated that CTS could modulate AR transactivation and suppress the DHT-mediated AR target genes (PSA, TMPRSS2, and TMEPA1) expression in both androgen responsive PCa LNCaP cells and castration resistant CWR22rv1 cells. Importantly, CTS selectively inhibits AR without repressing the activities of other nuclear receptors, including ERalpha, GR, and PR. The mechanistic studies indicate that CTS functions as an AR inhibitor to suppress androgen/AR-mediated cell growth and PSA expression by blocking AR dimerization and the AR-coregulator complex formation. Furthermore, we showed that CTS effectively inhibits CWR22Rv1 cell growth and expressions of AR target genes in the xenograft animal model. The previously un-described mechanisms of CTS may explain how CTS inhibits the growth of PCa cells and help us to establish new therapeutic concepts for the treatment of PCa.

Cryptotanshinone enhances TNF-alpha-induced apoptosis in chronic myeloid leukemia KBM-5 cells.[Pubmed:21519916]

Apoptosis. 2011 Jul;16(7):696-707.

Cryptotanshinone is a biologically active compound from the root of Salvia miltiorrhiza. In the present study, we investigated the molecular mechanisms by which Cryptotanshinone is in synergy with tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) for the induction of apoptosis in human chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) KBM-5 cells. The co-treatment of Cryptotanshinone with TNF-alpha reduced the viability of the cells [combination index (CI) < 1]. Concomitantly, the co-treatment of Cryptotanshinone and TNF-alpha elicited apoptosis, manifested by enhanced the number of terminal deoxynucleotide transferase-mediated dUTP-nick-end labeling (TUNEL)-positive cells, the sub-G1 cell populations, and the activation of caspase-8 and -3, in comparison with the treatment with either drug alone. The treatment with Cryptotanshinone further suppressed TNF-alpha-mediated expression of c-FLIP(L), Bcl-x(L), but the increased level of tBid (a caspase-8 substrate). Furthermore, Cryptotanshinone activated p38 but not NF-kappaB in TNF-alpha-treated KBM-5 cells. The addition of a specific p38 MAPK inhibitor SB203580 significantly attenuated Cryptotanshinone/TNF-alpha-induced apoptosis. The combination treatment of Cryptotanshinone and TNF-alpha also stimulated the reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC, a ROS scavenger) was not only able to block Cryptotanshinone/TNF-alpha-induced ROS production but also the activation of caspase-8 and p38 MAPK. Overall, our findings suggest that Cryptotanshinone can sensitize TNF-alpha-induced apoptosis in human myeloid leukemia KBM-5 cells, which appears through ROS-dependent activation of caspase-8 and p38.

Cryptotanshinone from Salvia miltiorrhiza BUNGE has an inhibitory effect on TNF-alpha-induced matrix metalloproteinase-9 production and HASMC migration via down-regulated NF-kappaB and AP-1.[Pubmed:16999937]

Biochem Pharmacol. 2006 Dec 15;72(12):1680-9.

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMP-9 and MMP-2) production and smooth muscle cell (SMC) migration may play key roles in the phathogenesis of neointima formation and atherosclerosis. Especially inducible MMP-9 expression was directly involved in the cancer cell invasion and SMC migration through vascular wall. In this study, we reveal that Cryptotanshinone (CT) purified from Salvia miltiorrhiza BUNGE had an inhibitory effect on MMP-9 production and migration of human aortic smooth muscle cells treated with TNF-alpha in a dose-dependent manner. The down regulation of transcription of MMP-9 mRNA was evidenced by RT-PCR and MMP-9 promoter assay using luciferase reporter gene. Eletrophoretic mobility shift assay showed NF-kappaB and AP-1 nuclear translocations were suppressed. In addition, Western blot analysis indicated that extracellular signal regulated kinase 1 and 2, p38 and JNK MAP kinase signaling pathways were inhibited. From the results, it is suggested that CT has anti-atherosclerosis and anti-neointimal formation activity.

Cryptotanshinone inhibits constitutive signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 function through blocking the dimerization in DU145 prostate cancer cells.[Pubmed:19118003]

Cancer Res. 2009 Jan 1;69(1):193-202.

Because signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) is constitutively activated in most human solid tumors and is involved in the proliferation, angiogenesis, immune evasion, and antiapoptosis of cancer cells, researchers have focused on STAT3 as a target for cancer therapy. We screened for natural compounds that inhibit the activity of STAT3 using a dual-luciferase assay. Cryptotanshinone was identified as a potent STAT3 inhibitor. Cryptotanshinone rapidly inhibited STAT3 Tyr705 phosphorylation in DU145 prostate cancer cells and the growth of the cells through 96 hours of the treatment. Inhibition of STAT3 Tyr705 phosphorylation in DU145 cells decreased the expression of STAT3 downstream target proteins such as cyclin D1, survivin, and Bcl-xL. To investigate the Cryptotanshinone inhibitory mechanism in DU145 cells, we analyzed proteins upstream of STAT3. Although phosphorylation of Janus-activated kinase (JAK) 2 was inhibited by 7 micromol/L Cryptotanshinone at 24 hours, inhibition of STAT3 Tyr705 phosphorylation occurred within 30 minutes and the activity of the other proteins was not affected. These results suggest that inhibition of STAT3 phosphorylation is caused by a JAK2-independent mechanism, with suppression of JAK2 phosphorylation as a secondary effect of Cryptotanshinone treatment. Continuing experiments revealed the possibility that Cryptotanshinone might directly bind to STAT3 molecules. Cryptotanshinone was colocalized with STAT3 molecules in the cytoplasm and inhibited the formation of STAT3 dimers. Computational modeling showed that Cryptotanshinone could bind to the SH2 domain of STAT3. These results suggest that Cryptotanshinone is a potent anticancer agent targeting the activation STAT3 protein. It is the first report that Cryptotanshinone has antitumor activity through the inhibition of STAT3.

Antidiabetes and antiobesity effect of cryptotanshinone via activation of AMP-activated protein kinase.[Pubmed:17429005]

Mol Pharmacol. 2007 Jul;72(1):62-72.

Metabolic disorders, including type 2 diabetes and obesity, represent major health risks in industrialized countries. AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) has become the focus of a great deal of attention as a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of metabolic syndromes, because AMPK has been demonstrated to mediate, at least in part, the effects of a number of physiological and pharmacological factors that exert beneficial effects on these disorders. Thus, the identification of a compound that activates the AMPK pathway would contribute significantly to the treatment and management of such syndromes. In service of this goal, we have screened a variety of naturally occurring compounds and have identified one compound, Cryptotanshinone, as a novel AMPK pathway activator. Cryptotanshinone was originally isolated from the dried roots of Salvia militorrhiza, an herb that is used extensively in Asian medicine and that is known to exert beneficial effects on the circulatory system. For the first time, in the present study, we have described the potent antidiabetic and antiobesity effects of Cryptotanshinone, both in vitro and in vivo. Our findings suggest that the activation of the AMPK pathway might contribute to the development of novel therapeutic approaches for the treatment of metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes and obesity.

Cryptotanshinone is a natural compound extracted from the root of Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge that shows antitumor activities. Cryptotanshinone inhibits STAT3 with an IC50 of 4.6 μM.

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