Effects and potential mechanisms of luteolin on cisplatin mediated inhibition of cervical adenocarcinoma

Brucea javanica (BJ) is widely used as an adjuvant therapy for malignant tumours in China. Currently, scholars at home and abroad mainly focus on the nonpolar-constituent fatty acids, which are the common main constituents of dietary edible oil, while the characteristic polar constituents such as flavonoid glycosides have not been explored. Luteolin (LU), as an active polar constituent of BJ, has been proven to be a platinum sensitizer in many cancers. The study employed a combination of network pharmacology, in vitro cell assays (HeLa, SiHa), and in vivo xenograft models to demonstrate that LU can potentiate the efficacy of CDDP while reducing its dosage and toxicity by inducing apoptosis, G2/M cell cycle arrest, and inhibition of migration/invasion. Mechanistically, LU appears to act through PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. This offers a highly promising adjuvant therapeutic strategy to improve treatment tolerance and prolong survival in cervical cancer (CC) patients.