title: Molecular targets of naturopathy in cancer research: bridge to modern medicine.
abstract: The relevance of naturopathy (defined as the practice of medicine for the treatment of human diseases with natural agents) in human cancer is beginning to be appreciated, as documented by renewed interest in nutraceutical research, the natural anticancer agents of dietary origin. Because of their pleiotropic effects and the ability to modulate multiple signaling pathways, which is a good attribute of natural agents, nutraceuticals have frequently been demonstrated to re-sensitize drug-resistant cancers. The effectiveness of nutraceuticals can be further enhanced if the tools for the relative assessment of their molecular targets are readily available. Such information can be critical for determining their most effective uses. Here, we discuss the anticancer potential of nutraceuticals and the associated challenges that have interfered with their translational potential as a naturopathic approach for the management of cancers. In the years to come, an efficient screening and assessment of molecular targets will be the key to make rapid progress in the area of drug design and discovery, especially focusing on evidence-based development of naturopathy for the treatment of human malignancies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Oncology, Karmanos Cancer Institute, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI 48201, USA. ahmada@karmanos.org.
authors.forename: Aamir
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ahmad
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Oncology, Karmanos Cancer Institute, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI 48201, USA. ginneba3@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Kevin R
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Ginnebaugh
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Oncology, Karmanos Cancer Institute, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI 48201, USA. yiweili@med.wayne.edu.
authors.forename: Yiwei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Interdisciplinary Science & Technology Research Academy Department of Chemistry, Maharashtra Cosmopolitan Education Society's Abeda Inamdar Senior College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Pune 411001, India. bhash46@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Subhash B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Padhye
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Oncology, Karmanos Cancer Institute, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI 48201, USA. fsarkar@med.wayne.edu.
authors.forename: Fazlul H
authors.initials: FH
authors.lastname: Sarkar
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D015195:Drug Design; D019008:Drug Resistance, Neoplasm; D006801:Humans; D058990:Molecular Targeted Therapy; D016328:NF-kappa B / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D009324:Naturopathy / Q000379:methods*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*; D015398:Signal Transduction
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D016328:NF-kappa B