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Peer-reviewedCC BYFrontiers in nutrition

Anti-bladder cancer effects of nuciferine, a bioactive compound extracted from Nelumbo nucifera leaves

  • Bin Qin1
  • Hong Liang2
  • Tongdong Kuang3
  • Chaohe Wei2
  • Meihui Qin3
  • Jiayao Li3
  • Huiling Lu3
  • Chao Guo2
  1. 1Department of Urology Surgery, Guigang City People's Hospital, The Eighth Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University , ,
  2. 2Department of Pharmacy, Guigang City People's Hospital, The Eighth Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University , ,
  3. 3Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution and Integrative Omics, Education Department of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Guilin Medical University , ,
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Abstract

Nuciferine, a bioactive compound found in Nelumbo nucifera leaves, demonstrates diverse pharmacological activities, including anticancer effects. However, to our knowledge, no previous study has examined the effects of nuciferine on bladder cancer (BC). In this study, nuciferine was first isolated from locally sourced N. nucifera leaves and characterized using instrumental analysis. Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), a potential anti-BC target, was identified through molecular docking analysis. In vivo assays demonstrated that nuciferine inhibited tumor growth in BC cell-based tumor-bearing mice. Nuciferine-treated mice showed an increase in terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL)-positive cells and a decrease in Ki67-labeled cells. In addition, B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) and STAT3 protein levels were reduced, whereas that of Bcl-2-associated X (Bax) was elevated following nuciferine treatment in mice. In conclusion, our findings suggest that nuciferine, a bioactive compound extracted from N. nucifera leaves, represents a potential candidate for preclinical treatment of BC.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{qin2026antibladder,
  title = {{Anti-bladder cancer effects of nuciferine, a bioactive compound extracted from Nelumbo nucifera leaves}},
  author = {Bin Qin and Hong Liang and Tongdong Kuang and Chaohe Wei and Meihui Qin and Jiayao Li and Huiling Lu and Chao Guo},
  journal = {Frontiers in nutrition},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.3389/fnut.2026.1881388},
  url = {https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13727535},
  note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Anti-bladder cancer effects of nuciferine, a bioactive compound extracted from Nelumbo nucifera leaves
AU  - Bin Qin
AU  - Hong Liang
AU  - Tongdong Kuang
AU  - Chaohe Wei
AU  - Meihui Qin
AU  - Jiayao Li
AU  - Huiling Lu
AU  - Chao Guo
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/20
JO  - Frontiers in nutrition
DO  - 10.3389/fnut.2026.1881388
UR  - https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13727535
AB  - Nuciferine, a bioactive compound found in Nelumbo nucifera leaves, demonstrates diverse pharmacological activities, including anticancer effects. However, to our knowledge, no previous study has examined the effects of nuciferine on bladder cancer (BC). In this study, nuciferine was first isolated from locally sourced N. nucifera leaves and characterized using instrumental analysis. Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), a potential anti-BC target, was identified through molecular docking analysis. In vivo assays demonstrated that nuciferine inhibited tumor growth in BC cell-based tumor-bearing mice. Nuciferine-treated mice showed an increase in terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL)-positive cells and a decrease in Ki67-labeled cells. In addition, B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) and STAT3 protein levels were reduced, whereas that of Bcl-2-associated X (Bax) was elevated following nuciferine treatment in mice. In conclusion, our findings suggest that nuciferine, a bioactive compound extracted from N. nucifera leaves, represents a potential candidate for preclinical treatment of BC.
SN  - 2296-861X
ER  -