{
  "abstract": "Drug repurposing offers an efficient strategy to identify novel anticancer agents from marketed compounds. We screened a library of ~1400 approved drugs using a PPARE–PPAR-α luciferase reporter assay to uncover modulators of lipid metabolism that induce cancer cell death without direct binding to PPARα. This primary screen identified 224 compounds inhibiting reporter activity by >50%, of which 26 demonstrated ≥50% cytotoxicity in KAIMRC1 breast cancer and HCT116 colorectal cancer cells at 10 µM after 48 h incubation. AI-based DrTarget analysis classified these hits, with Group 1 comprising four previously unrecognized anticancer agents: antibiotics cefditoren pivoxil, tebipenem pivoxil, broxyquinoline, and cosmetic ingredient 1-hexadecanol. Dose–response studies across KAIMRC1, HCT116, and SW480 cells revealed IC50 values as low as ~10 µM, comparable to daunorubicin, a well-known anti-cancer drug. Apoptosis profiling confirmed activation of intrinsic/extrinsic pathways via cytochrome c, SMAC/Diablo, TRAIL-R1/DR4, and phospho-p53 modulation. Based on these findings, we propose the repurposing of Broxyquinoline, 1-Hexadecanol, Cefditoren Pivoxil, and Tebipenem Pivoxil as potential anti-cancer drugs.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "King Abdullah International Medical Research Center (KAIMRC), Riyadh 11481, Saudi Arabia",
    "King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh 11481, Saudi Arabia",
    "Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs (MNGHA), Riyadh 11481, Saudi Arabia",
    "College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11459, Saudi Arabia",
    "Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh 11481, Saudi Arabia",
    "Machine Learning Applied to Drug Discovery, DrTarget, C/Alejo Carpentier 13, 28806 Alcalá De Henares, Spain"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 5,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1,
        2
      ],
      "name": "Shoeb Ikhlas",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-0907-8440"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Amani Alsharidah",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-3199-0428"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        2,
        4
      ],
      "name": "Reem A. Alkhodier",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-3946-6145"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5
      ],
      "name": "Sergio Senar",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-0271-1618"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1,
        2
      ],
      "name": "Mohamed Boudjelal",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-1009-4031"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/558gsa7bx1tf9.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.3390/cancers18193231",
  "fulltext_url": "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13664190/?tool=EBI",
  "id": "558gsa7bx1tf9",
  "issns": [
    "2072-6694"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13664190",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "1312|Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7220892627",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13664190/pdf/?tool=EBI",
  "pmcid": "PMC13664190",
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-01",
  "publisher": "MDPI AG",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/558gsa7bx1tf9.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:17:31Z",
      "native_id": "PMC:PMC13664190",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13664190"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:19:58Z",
      "native_id": "10.3390/cancers18193231",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6694/18/19/3231"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biochemistry",
      "origin": "openalex:1312|Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors",
      "subfield": "molecular-biology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "From Infection to Oncology: AI-Assisted Drug Repurposing Uncovers Anti-Infective and Excipient-Class Compounds as PPAR-α-Linked Anticancer Agents",
  "title_text": "From Infection to Oncology: AI-Assisted Drug Repurposing Uncovers Anti-Infective and Excipient-Class Compounds as PPAR-α-Linked Anticancer Agents",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:19:58Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/558gsa7bx1tf9",
  "venue": "Cancers",
  "versions": []
}