Potential anticancer properties and mechanisms of thymoquinone in osteosarcoma and bone metastasis

Abstract

Despite great advances, therapeutic approaches of osteosarcoma, the most prevalent class of preliminary pediatric bone tumors, as well as bone-related malignancies, continue to demonstrate insufficient adequacy. In recent years, a growing trend toward applying natural bioactive compounds, particularly phytochemicals, as novel agents for cancer treatment has been observed. Bioactive phytochemicals exert their anticancer features through two main ways: they induce cytotoxic effects against cancerous cells without having any detrimental impact on normal cell macromolecules such as DNA and enzymes, while at the same time combating the oncogenic signaling axis activated in tumor cells. Thymoquinone (TQ), the most abundant bioactive compound of Nigella sativa, has received considerable attention in cancer treatment owing to its distinctive properties, including apoptosis induction, cell cycle arrest, angiogenesis and metastasis inhibition, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, along with inducing immune system responses and reducing side effects of traditional chemotherapeutic drugs. The present review is focused on the characteristics and mechanisms by which TQ exerts its cytotoxic effects on bone malignancies.