Plants have long been providing mankind with remedies of different ailments.
Flavonoids, a family of naturally occurring polyphenolic compounds are ubiquitous in plants. Development of
polyphenol-based drugs has not attracted much attention by researchers and
drug companies. Therefore, despite extensive studies on
polyphenols, this vast group of compounds is underrepresented in clinical medicine.
Fisetin (3,7,3',4'-tetrahydroxyflavone) belongs to the
flavonol subgroup of
flavonoids together with
quercetin,
myricetin and
kaempferol and is found in several fruits and vegetables including strawberries, apples, persimmons and onions.
Fisetin is showing promise as a useful natural agent against
cancer and has been evaluated for its potential inhibitory role against
cancer in several in vitro and in vivo studies. The Akt/mTOR pathway is known to play a central role in various cellular processes that contribute to the malignant phenotype. Accordingly, inhibition of this signaling cascade has been a focus of recent therapeutic studies. Novel inhibitors of PI3-K, Akt, and mTOR are now passing through early phase clinical trials. Herein, we review the effect of
fisetin on the PI3- K/Akt/mTOR pathway as studied in different
cancer cell models.