• Chia-Hung Yen, Chien-Ju Lin, Peng-Yu Chen, Yi-Jin Chen, Ling-Rung Wei, Pei-Hsuan Chen, Yi-Chen Yeh, Lily Hui-Ching Wang, Hsun-Shuo Chang, and Wan-Chi Tsai.
• Graduate Institute of Natural Products, College of Pharmacy, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80708, Taiwan.
• Int J Med Sci. 2025 Jan 1; 22 (3): 651661651-661.

AbstractPancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a major global health challenge owing to late diagnosis and inherently metastatic nature. Although surgical intervention offers a potential remedy, only few patients are eligible, and drug resistance further complicates treatment. The therapeutic limitations have catalyzed a search for alternative treatments, particularly natural products. High-throughput screening identified six extracts from the Ardisia genus, with four from Ardisia virens Kurz, and 4-hydroxy-2-methoxy-6-tridecylphenyl acetate (HMTA) as the most potent candidate. Herein, we explored the anti-cancer effects of HMTA on PDAC and found it induced strong cytotoxic effects on BxPC-3 and PANC-1 pancreatic cancer cell lines. HMTA inhibited cell proliferation and induced apoptosis, as evidenced by annexin V/PI labeling and caspase 3 activation. HMTA halted cancer cell proliferation at the G2/M phase and induced multinucleation. Molecular docking analysis revealed that HMTA potentially could interact with tubulin, and in vitro assay confirmed it suppresses tubulin polymerization. HMTA significantly inhibited BxPC-3 xenograft tumor growth in mice. Overall, these findings suggested that HMTA is a promising candidate for PDAC therapy.© The author(s).

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