Research Progress on Anti-Tumor Mechanism of Tannins in Traditional Chinese Medicine

Abstract

By reviewing the literature on the efficacy of tannins in traditional Chinese medicine in the last decade or so, we have classified the anti-tumor mechanism of tannins in conjunction with the latest mechanism exploration in the field of oncology. Tannins, a class of multi-phenolic compounds widely present in the diet, have been studied by scholars worldwide in recent years because of their relatively outstanding pharmacological activities. The mechanisms of anti-tumor action of tannins can be summarized as follows: the arrest of the cell cycle, arrest of tumor migration, enhancement of immune competence, induction of apoptosis, and antioxidant effects.