Letter to the Editor
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Nov 7, 2024; 30(41): 4496-4502
Published online Nov 7, 2024. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v30.i41.4496
Harnessing the power of Calculus bovis: Anti-cancer properties and Wnt pathway modulation in hepatocellular carcinoma
Himanshi Goyal, Sachin Parwani, Kaneez Fatima, Jyotdeep Kaur
Himanshi Goyal, Sachin Parwani, Kaneez Fatima, Jyotdeep Kaur, Department of Biochemistry, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh 160012, India
Author contributions: Goyal H and Kaur J designed the overall concept and outline of the manuscript; Goyal H contributed to the writing, and editing the manuscript and illustrations; Parwani S and Fatima K contributed equally to the writing and review of the literature; Kaur J contributed to supervision, editing and revision of the manuscript; all of the authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript to be published.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors declare no conflict of interest in publishing the manuscript.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Jyotdeep Kaur, PhD, Professor, Department of Biochemistry, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Sector 12, Chandigarh 160012, India. jyotdeep2001@yahoo.co.in
Received: August 5, 2024
Revised: September 12, 2024
Accepted: September 25, 2024
Published online: November 7, 2024
Processing time: 78 Days and 21.7 Hours
Abstract

In this manuscript, we comment on the article, which explores the anti-cancer effects of Calculus bovis (CB) in tumor biology. We highlight its potential, particularly in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), where it inhibits the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin pathways and induces apoptosis. CB contains compounds such as oleanolic acid and ursolic acid that target interleukin-6, mitogen-activated protein kinase 8, vascular endothelial growth factor, and caspase-3, offering anti-inflammatory and hepatoprotective benefits. The manuscript also discusses CB sativus (CBS), an artificial substitute, which has shown efficacy in reducing hepatic inflammation and oxidative stress in animal models. We emphasize the need for further research on the effects of CBS on the gut-liver axis and gut microbiota, and on targeting Wnt signaling and M2 tumor-associated macrophage as potential therapeutic strategies against HCC.

Keywords: Calculus bovis; Liver cancer; Tumor-associated macrophages; M2 polarization; Wnt signaling pathway

Core Tip: The traditional Chinese medicine Calculus bovis (CB) is known to affect tumor biology by showing promise in inhibiting hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression by targeting the Wnt signaling pathway. The study highlights CB's anti-cancer properties, particularly against liver cancer, through modulation of pathways such as phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin, and compounds such as oleanolic acid and ursolic acid. Additionally, CB sativus has shown efficacy in reducing hepatic inflammation and oxidative stress, suggesting potential therapeutic strategies for HCC, warranting further clinical validation.