Azadirachta indica (Neem) and Neem Limonoids as Anticancer Agents: Molecular Mechanisms and Targets

Abstract

Neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss), one of the most versatile medicinal plants that grows ubiquitously in India has attained worldwide prominence owing to its wide range of medicinal properties. The bioactivity of neem has been attributed to its rich content of complex limonoids. Neem extracts and limonoids have been documented to exert antiproliferative effects both in vitro and in vivo. Accumulating evidence indicates that the anticancer effects of neem extracts and neem limonoids are mediated by preventing carcinogen activation; enhancing host antioxidant and detoxification systems; inhibiting cell proliferation, inflammation, invasion and angiogenesis; inducing apoptosis; modulating oncogenic transcription factors and signalling kinases; and influencing the epigenome. Neem and its constituent limonoids that target multiple signalling pathways aberrant in cancer are promising candidates for anticancer drug development.