Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40156720›Full record

ReviewMolecular biology reports2025

Shikonin a potent phytotherapeutic: a comprehensive review on metabolic reprogramming to overcome drug resistance in cancer.

Stuti Biswal, Sanjeeb Kumar Sahoo, Bijesh K Biswal

Abstract readReview
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Molecular biology reports, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Promising Role of PKM2 in the Diagnosis and Prognosis of Ovarian Cancer.Anti-cancer agents in medicinal chemistry · 2026
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Stuti BiswalCancer Drug Resistance Laboratory, Department of Life Science, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela, Odisha, 769008, India.
Sanjeeb Kumar SahooInstitute of Life Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, 751021, India.
Bijesh K BiswalCancer Drug Resistance Laboratory, Department of Life Science, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela, Odisha, 769008, India. biswalb@nitrkl.ac.in.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5609-7660

Funding

Council of Scientific and Industrial Research and University Grant Commission, New Delhi, India 997/(CSIR-UGC NET JUNE 2019)
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Drug resistance remains a major challenge in cancer therapy, often leading to treatment failure. Metabolic reprogramming, a hallmark of cancer, plays a pivotal role in drug resistance. Phytocompounds, particularly shikonin, a naphthoquinone derived from Lithospermum erythrorhizon, have garnered significant interest as potential alternatives for cancer prevention and treatment. This review focuses on the anticancer properties of shikonin, particularly its ability to modulate metabolic reprogramming and overcome drug resistance. This review, based on extensive searches in databases like PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and Scopus, highlights shikonin's potential as a therapeutic agent. Shikonin exhibits a wide range of anticancer activities, including induction of apoptosis, autophagy, necroptosis, inhibition of angiogenesis, invasion, and migration, as well as disruption of the cell cycle and promotion of DNA damage. It targets altered cancer cell metabolism to inhibit proliferation and reverse drug resistance, making it a promising candidate for therapeutic development. Preliminary clinical trials suggest that shikonin can enhance the efficacy of established chemotherapeutic agents, immunotherapies, and radiation through additive and synergistic interactions. Despite its promise, further research is needed to elucidate the precise mechanisms underlying shikonin's metabolic reprogramming effects in cancer. A comprehensive understanding could pave the way for its integration into standard oncological treatments. With its capacity to act on multiple cancer pathways and enhance conventional treatments, shikonin stands out as a viable candidate for combating drug-resistant cancers and advancing clinical oncology.

Indexed as

Antineoplastic Agents, PhytogenicDrug Resistance, NeoplasmNaphthoquinonesNeoplasmsAnimalsAntineoplastic AgentsApoptosisCell ProliferationHumansMetabolic ReprogrammingAntineoplastic AgentsAntineoplastic Agents, PhytogenicNaphthoquinonesshikoninCombinatorial therapyDrug resistanceMetabolic reprogrammingPhytocompoundShikonin

Identifiers

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.