Terpene Compounds as a Treatment for Post-Chemotherapy-Induced Neurotoxicity

Overview

It was recently discovered that there is prevalence of chemotherapy-associated neurological effects in cancer patients. Specifically, cognitive impairment or "chemobrain" affects up to 75% of cancer patients during treatment and 35% of cancer patients post-treatment. With the rapid increase in the number of cancer survivors, chemobrain is becoming an urgent but unmet clinical need. Three compounds were shortlisted based on antioxidant and anticancer properties, and the ability to cross the blood barrier according to Lipinks's Rule of 5. The purpose of the study was to determine if the plant-based terpene compounds beta-Ionone, alpha-Pinene, and Terpinen-4-ol will be able to reduce the effects of cisplatin-induced neurotoxicity. To study this, the cells were pretreated with the terpene compounds, then treated with the chemotherapeutic agent cisplatin. The expression of the proteins Caspase 3, Caspase 7, and PPAR, and cytotoxicity of the compounds were measured. The results signify that in cisplatin-induced neurotoxicity, Terpinen-4-ol is able to reduce the expression of apoptotic proteins Caspase 7 and increase the expression of anti-apoptotic proteins PPAR at low concentrations, thereby reducing the cytotoxicity of cisplatin. Neurotoxicity caused by cisplatin treatment remains a serious dose-limiting factor. However, this research provides a therapeutic approach to utilize Terpinen-4-ol as a pretreatment. This study brings attention to a different aspect of terpene compounds, whilst these compounds have the potential to be tested clinically as they have strong pharmacokinetic properties.

Competition history

• AJAS 2025 Category not listed

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