Ácido aristolóquico-possível agente anti-tumoral: uma revisão sistemática

Abstract

Introduction: Cancer treatment has been a challenge throughout history. Today, cancer is estimated to be the second leading cause of death in the world. Still, it is stipulated that in the coming years its incidence will increase considerably. Aristolochic acid (AA), belonging to plants of the genus Aristolochia, has been associated with several therapeutic properties and presents itself as a possible compound with antitumor properties. On the other hand, numerous studies address its toxicity and carcinogenic potential. Objective: Synthesize what is available in the literature on the effect of Aristolochic Acid on cells and/or animal, addressing the tumor, anti-tumor or cytotoxic potential of the compound. Methods: A systematic review was developed with searches made in Pubmed, ScienceDirect and Scielo using the descriptors (Aristolochic Ácid) AND (Cancer), where all studies published until February 2023, available in Portuguese, English and Spanish and that approached the effects of exposure to AA in animal and/or cell cultures were considered eligible. Results: 15 studies were considered eligible. The studies addressed effects such as mortality, cytotoxicity, tumorigenesis and antineoplastic effects. Discussions: The correlation of AA with cancerous effects is well established in the literature, with pro-inflammatory and pro-neoplastic effects found in almost all studies. However, there was a study where the AA-IV subtype did not present negative effects on the species, allowing to consider that this subtype contains the desired therapeutic properties. Conclusion: Despite evidence of antineoplastic action, the vast majority of studies demonstrated the cytotoxic and carcinogenic effects of AA, as well as progression to mortality of animals.