ArticlePloS one2023
Cytotoxic properties of unfractionated and fractionated bromelain alone or in combination with chemotherapeutic agents in colorectal cancer cells.
Article in PloS one, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 4 citations in OpenAlex.
- Exploring the Therapeutic Potential of Bromelain: Applications, Benefits, and Mechanisms.Nutrients · 2024Pooled it
- Assessment of the cytotoxic, proapoptotic, and genotoxic effects of bromelain on human peripheral blood mononuclear cells.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Anticancer Potential of Pineapple and its Bioactive Compound Bromelain.Current pharmaceutical design · 2025Review
- Molecular Understanding and Pharmacological Potency of Plant-Derived Compounds in Colorectal Cancer (CRC): A Critical Analysis and Future Perspectives.Cell biochemistry and biophysics · 2024Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 5 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundColorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most lethal cancers worldwide. Long-term survival is not achieved in metastatic CRC despite the current multidisciplinary therapies. Bromelain, a compound extracted from the pineapple plant, has multiple functions and anticancer properties. Previously, bromelain has been chromatographically separated into four fractions. Fraction 3 (F3) exhibits the highest proteolytic activity. The anticancer effects of F3 bromelain in CRC cells is unknown.
methodsIn vitro cytotoxicity was verified through a sulforhodamine B assay. Apoptosis in CRC cells induced by unfractionated or F3 bromelain was examined using Annexin V-FITC/PI staining and Western blot analysis. ROS status, autophagy and lysosome formation were determined by specific detection kit.
resultsThe cytotoxicity of F3 bromelain in CRC cells was found to be comparable to that of unfractionated bromelain. F3 bromelain induces caspase-dependent apoptosis in CRC cells. Treatment with unfractionated or F3 bromelain increased superoxide and oxidative stress levels and autophagy and lysosome formation. ATG5/12 and beclin-1 were upregulated, and the conversion of LC3B-I to LC3B-II was increased significantly by treatment with F3 bromelain. Treated CQ, autophagy inhibitor, with unfractionated or F3 bromelain enhances the cytotoxic effects. Finally, the combination of unfractionated and F3 bromelain with a routine chemotherapeutic agent (5-fluourouracil, irinotecan, or oxaliplatin) resulted in synergistically higher cytotoxic potency in CRC cells.
conclusionUnfractionated and F3 bromelain inhibits CRC cell proliferation in vitro, and the cytotoxic effects of unfractionated bromelain are equivalent to F3 bromelain. F3 bromelain may be a potential and potent drug for clinical use due to its anticancer efficacy and high synergistic cytotoxicity when combined with a routine chemotherapeutic agent for CRC.
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