{
  "abstract": "Background: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a highly prevalent malignant epithelial tumor in southern China. Although early-stage NPC patients have a favorable prognosis with concurrent chemoradiotherapy, the limited efficacy of current clinical regimens remains a crucial obstacle in the treatment of advanced NPC patients. 5-Methoxyflavone, a methylated flavonoid, has been reported to exhibit diverse roles in anti-cancer activity and lipid modulation. However, its potential role in NPC remains unclear. This study aims to investigate the effect of 5-Methoxyflavone on NPC proliferation and its underlying mechanism.\n\nMethods: MTT, colony formation, EdU assays, and flow cytometry were performed with various concentrations of 5-Methoxyflavone (0, 40, 60, 80 and 100 µM) to investigate its effect on NPC cell proliferation. A HONE1 xenograft model was established for in vivo validation. Immunoprecipitation and dual-luciferase reporter assay were employed to confirm 5-Methoxyflavone’s regulatory function on the p53/SREBPs pathway. Lipid synthesis was determined by measuring total cholesterol and triglycerides using ELISA and visualizing lipid droplets via Oil Red O staining. Ferroptosis was evaluated by detecting intracellular ferrous ions, lipid ROS, and glutathione (GSH) levels.\n\nResults: 5-Methoxyflavone suppressed NPC cell proliferation in a concentration-dependent manner in vitro. In addition, it profoundly inhibited tumor xenograft growth in mice without causing obvious adverse toxicity. Mechanistically, 5-Methoxyflavone deubiquitinated and stabilized p53 via inhibiting MDM2 expression, leading to suppression of SREBPs and their downstream lipid synthesis-related genes, thus inhibiting lipid synthesis in NPC cells. p53 depletion counteracted 5-Methoxyflavone’s inhibitory effect, while SREBP1 knockdown restored proliferation in p53-silenced cells. Furthermore, 5-Methoxyflavone-stimulated downregulation of SREBP1/SCD signaling triggered ferroptosis in NPC cells by promoting iron accumulation, lipid peroxidation, and GSH depletion. Overexpression of SCD reversed the ferroptosis-inducing effects of 5-Methoxyflavone.\n\nConclusions: Our findings reveal that 5-Methoxyflavone inhibits NPC proliferation by blocking lipid synthesis and inducing ferroptosis via the p53/SREBPs/SCD signaling pathway, providing evidence for the development of innovative drugs for NPC treatment.\n\nSupplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1186/s12896-026-01163-9.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Pathophysiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, Guangdong, 524023 China",
    "The People’s Hospital of Gaozhou, Gaozhou, Guangdong, 525200 China",
    "Department of Head and Neck Oncology, Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, Guangdong, 524023 China"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 7,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Yiwen Cui"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Yan Zhao"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Rong Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Mingyong Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Tongyuan Deng"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Bo Bao"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Yingying Hu"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/b0wyz1zed5cvp.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1186/s12896-026-01163-9",
  "fulltext_url": "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13746537/",
  "id": "b0wyz1zed5cvp",
  "issns": [
    "1472-6750"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1186/s12896-026-01163-9",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Research"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "1306|Ferroptosis and cancer prognosis"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7161548591",
  "pdf_url": null,
  "pmcid": "PMC13746537",
  "pmid": "42151881",
  "published": "2026-05-18",
  "publisher": "BMC",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/b0wyz1zed5cvp.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-11T12:23:54Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13746537",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1186/s12896-026-01163-9"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:1306|Ferroptosis and cancer prognosis",
      "subfield": "oncology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "5-Methoxyflavone suppresses nasopharyngeal carcinoma proliferation through regulating p53/SREBP/SCD signaling-mediated lipid synthesis and ferroptosis",
  "title_text": "5-Methoxyflavone suppresses nasopharyngeal carcinoma proliferation through regulating p53/SREBP/SCD signaling-mediated lipid synthesis and ferroptosis",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-13T12:22:56Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/b0wyz1zed5cvp",
  "venue": "BMC Biotechnology",
  "versions": []
}