EFFECT OF BIOINSPIRED SYNTHETIC ANTI-MICROBIAL PEPTIDES ON COLORECTAL CANCER CELLS (SW620)

Abstract

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the world's third most common cancer and the second biggest cause of cancer-related deaths. Despite significant advances in CRC therapeutic intervention, cytotoxicity, drug resistance, and adverse effects remain a major issue to be major problems, necessitating the urgent development of novel therapeutic agents. The use of Bioinspired Short Anti-Microbial Peptides (BSAMPs) as anticancer peptides could pave the way for the development of innovative anticancer treatments with better therapeutic characteristics. Anti-microbial peptides (AMPs) are a class of small peptides that widely exist in nature, and they are an essential part of the innate immune system of different organisms. AMPs have a wide range of inhibitory effects against bacteria, fungi, parasites, viruses, and even cancer cells. This study investigated the anticancer and anti-inflammatory role of novel BSAMPs in human colorectal cancer cells (SW620). The results demonstrated that BSAMPS inhibited the proliferation of CRC cells by inducing apoptosis through the activation of the intrinsic mitochondrial pathway. Moreover, treatment with BSAMPs downregulated the activation of STAT3, EGFR, Akt, and NF-kB, followed by decreased expression of c-Myc and ?-catenin. This is the first time, that BSAMPs structurally derived from naturally occurring AMPs have been recognized for their anticancer potential. These pleiotropic effects of BSAMPs on apoptosis, cell proliferation, survival, differentiation, and inflammation highlight their role as an alternative therapy in cancer treatment.