Fighting New Wars with old Weapons: Repurposing of Anti-Malarial Drug for Anticancer Therapy Quinacrine role in BC treatment

Angela Samanta (1), Angshuman Sarkar (2)
(1) CMBL, Department of Biological Sciences, BITS Pilani K K Birla Goa Campus, Zuarinagar, Goa 403726, India, Iran, Islamic Republic of,
(2) CMBL, Department of Biological Sciences, BITS Pilani K K Birla Goa Campus, Zuarinagar, Goa 403726, India, India

Abstract

Background: Quinacrine (QC), an attractive anticancer drug , has been forwarded for clinical evaluation in various cancer types due to its tremendous safety data accumulated since World War II . Its shotgun nature makes it unmissable as a chemotherapy drug that traps and activates multiple pathways.


Results: Recently, QC has been shown to block malignancy by affecting pathways, including RHO signaling, G1/S arrest, ROS emission, and cell death, and ,,, through autophagy. In this review, we have extensively studied QC as an anticancer agent that affect various signaling pathways. We have documented activity via WNT, NOTCH, HEDGEHOG, MAPK, EGFR, P53, RHO, AKT, NF-k and TGF pathways and reformed the already established mode of action of QC.


Conclusion: QC’s effects on multiple key signaling pathways, implicated in the malignant progression of numerous cancer types, make it an exciting candidate as a chemotherapeutic agent for new combination treatments and therapies.

References

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Authors

Angela Samanta
Angshuman Sarkar
asarkar@goa.bits-pilani.ac.in (Primary Contact)
1.
Samanta A, Sarkar A. Fighting New Wars with old Weapons: Repurposing of Anti-Malarial Drug for Anticancer Therapy: Quinacrine role in BC treatment. Arch Breast Cancer [Internet]. 2022 Sep. 25 [cited 2025 May 2];9(4):439-4. Available from: https://archbreastcancer.com/index.php/abc/article/view/611

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