Anticancer properties of tocotrienols: A review of cellular mechanisms and molecular targets

Vitamin E TTs have gained interest due to their health benefits in chronic diseases. In particular, TTs were reported to exert significant antitumor activity in a wide range of cancer cells, by counteracting cell growth or proliferation, metastasis and angiogenesis. Recent studies pointed out that TTs exert a synergistic antitumor effect on cancer cells when given in combination with either standard antitumor agents or natural compounds with anticancer activity. These results, together with the safety of TT administration in healthy subjects, suggest that these compounds might represent a new chemopreventive or anticancer treatment strategy. Clinical trials aimed at confirming this antitumor activity of TTs are needed. Vitamin E is composed of two groups of compounds: α‐, β‐, γ‐, and δ‐tocopherols (TPs), and the corresponding unsaturated tocotrienols (TTs). TTs are found in natural sources such as red palm oil, annatto seeds, and rice bran. In the last decades, TTs (specifically, γ‐TT and δ‐TT) have gained interest due to their health benefits i n chronic diseases, based on their antioxidant, neuroprotective, cholesterol‐lowering, anti‐inflammatory activities. Several in vitro and in vivo studies pointed out that TTs also exert a significant antitumor activity in a wide range of cancer cells. Specifically, TTs were shown to exert antipr oliferative/proapoptotic effects and to reduce the metastatic or angiogenic properties of different cancer cells; moreo...
Source: Journal of Cellular Physiology - Category: Cytology Authors: Tags: REVIEW ARTICLE Source Type: research