Isobavachalcone induces concurrent apoptosis and pyroptosis in anaplastic thyroid cancer cells by modulating the caspase-mediated cleavage of PARP and GSDME.

Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC) is a highly lethal malignant tumor, and there's still no effective treatment for it. Isobavachalcone (IBC) is a chalcone derivative and comes from the traditional Chinese herb . IBC exhibits potent anti-cancer activity against various cancers. However, its efficacy and mechanism of action in ATC remain unclear. This research used and models to evaluate the anti-cancer effects of IBC on ATC. The results showed that IBC has significant anti-cancer effects with extremely low toxicity. Mechanically, IBC inhibits ATC cell growth by inducing cell cycle arrest in the G2/M and S phases. IBC induces apoptosis and pyroptosis, with caspase-dependent Poly ADP-ribose Polymerase (PARP) and Gasdermin E (GSDME) cleavage simultaneously. This study reveals a novel function of IBC in inducing pyroptosis in tumor cells, expands its known pharmacological spectrum and highlights its value as a therapeutic agent for ATC.