Natural sesquiterpene zingiberene exerts ameliorative effects on growth of glioblastoma cells by instigating ROS mediated apoptosis.

Glioblastoma multiforme is the most aggressive and invasive primary brain tumor in adults and its prognosis and survival rate remain poor. Despite substantial improvements in therapy, the 5-year survival rate of glioblastoma patients remains low. Sesquiterpenes have previously been found to be effective in inhibiting the proliferation and growth of breast, gastric and lung cancer cells. Owing to their efficacy, sesquiterpenes have been used in various clinical trials. In the present study, we investigated the anticancer efficacy of a well-known sesquiterpene, Zingiberene, isolated from Zingiber officinale in C6 glioblastoma cells. Zingiberene suppresses the growth and proliferation of C6 cells. Upon treatment of C6 cells with zingiberene, nuclear fragmentation and ROS were qualitatively enhanced compared to untreated control cells. The levels of caspase-3 were also significantly reduced (p<0.01), with a concomitant decline in the mRNA expression of Bax and Bcl-2. On the basis of molecular docking studies, Zingiberene demonstrated good binding energy score of -6.8 and -5.5 Kcal/mol towards Bax and Bcl-2 proteins, respectively. Based on these observations, it was inferred that zingiberene has potential as a plausible therapeutic agent against glioblastoma cells. Detailed mechanistic studies are needed to substantiate and establish the anticancer effects of zingiberene against glioblastoma cells.