YUNG-FU CHANG^1,2,3,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.2, pp. 283-287, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.025743 - 18 November 2022

Abstract Areca nut is used worldwide as a hallucinogenic addicting drug along the tropical belt. Arecoline, a toxic compound, is the most important alkaloid in areca nuts. The adverse effects of oral uptake and chewing of areca nut are well known. For example, the possibility of cancer caused by chewing areca nuts is widely discussed. Chewing areca nut has other adverse effects on other organs, including abnormal cell differentiation, oral cancer, and several other diseases. The use of areca nut is also associated with low birthweight. Skeletal musculature is the largest organ in the body and More >

Lian Zheng, Zhen-Jie Guan, Wen-Ting Pan, Tian-Feng Du, Yu-Jia Zhai, Jia Guo

Oncology Research, Vol.26, No.3, pp. 483-494, 2018, DOI:10.3727/096504017X14941825760362

Abstract Oral submucous fibrosis (OSF) induced by chewing of the areca nut has been considered to be a precancerous lesion with a high probability of developing oral squamous cell carcinoma. Tanshinone (TSN) is the main component extracted from Salvia miltiorrhiza, a traditional Chinese medicine, which was found to have diverse pharmacological effects, such as anti-inflammatory and antitumor. In the current study, we aimed to identify the inhibitory effects and the underlying mechanism of TSN on OSF progress. We found that treatment with TSN inhibited the arecoline-mediated proliferation of primary human oral mucosal fibroblasts and reversed the… More >