Antidepressant Selegiline shows promise as cost-effective breast cancer treatment

Guwahati researchers at IASST repurpose Selegiline for potential breast cancer therapy through innovative drug repurposing strategies

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New Delhi: Biomedical researchers in India have identified the antidepressant drug Selegiline as a promising candidate for breast cancer treatment, offering a potential cost-effective alternative to traditional cancer therapies.
This breakthrough comes from the Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST) in Guwahati, where scientists are focusing on repurposing existing drugs to develop more efficient cancer treatments.
Drug repurposing has become an increasingly popular strategy in biomedical research, providing a faster and more economical path to discovering new treatments for complex diseases like cancer. Developing new cancer drugs is often a lengthy and expensive process, requiring extensive trials and regulatory approvals. In contrast, repurposing existing drugs, which have already undergone safety testing, allows scientists to explore new therapeutic uses more quickly.
Led by Dr. Asis Bala, a research team at IASST, an autonomous institute under the Department of Science & Technology (DST), Government of India, has shown that Selegiline, an antidepressant commonly used to treat Parkinson’s disease and depression, may also serve as an effective anticancer agent for breast cancer.
The researchers conducted integrated network pharmacological studies and found that Selegiline interacts with ten genes linked to various types of cancer. Initial laboratory tests demonstrated that Selegiline effectively killed both estrogen and progesterone-positive (ER+ & PR+) breast cancer cells as well as triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) cells. The drug induced cell death in ER+ and PR+ breast cancer cells through a mechanism independent of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and it also inhibited protein kinase C phosphorylation, a process that could play a role in Selegiline’s anticancer effects.
This study, published in the journal Medical Oncology, marks the first time that Selegiline has been identified as a potential treatment for breast cancer. The research paves the way for further investigation, including in vivo studies to evaluate the drug’s efficacy in living organisms, dose optimization, and an assessment of possible side effects. Researchers are optimistic that with further study, Selegiline could become a valuable tool in the fight against breast cancer.