Work

The Influence of Hop Prenylated Chalcones on Mitochondrial Membrane Potential Depolarization and a Response to Oxidative Stress in MCC13 Merkel Cells

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Background: Prenylated chalcones are recognized for their beneficial nutritional properties and have attracted increasing interest due to their anticancer activities, which involve various mechanisms and pathways. In the current study, we investigated the influence of prenylated chalcone xanthohumol (XH) and its two minor derivatives xanthohumol C (XHC) and 1″,2″-dihydroxantohumol C (DHXHC) on the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), causing oxidative stress. Concomitantly, we studied the effect of mitochondrial transmembrane potential changes on human skin cancer, namely Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC13). Methods: The cancer cells were treated with the mentioned compounds for 24 and 48 h at various concentrations. Results: Our findings showed that ROS generation was dose-dependent at 24 h for xanthohumol, whereas for xanthohumol C and 1″2″-dihydroxanthohumol C, a significant increase in ROS occurred only at the highest concentration (100 μM) after 48 h. Mitochondrial membrane potential was significantly diminished by all the compounds. Conclusions: Taken together, our results indicate that the aforementioned chalcones exhibit cytotoxic activity against the MCC13 cell line and may be promising candidates for further investigation as anticancer agents.

Source: Pharmaceuticals

DOI: 10.3390/ph19050687

Authors: Marcelina Chmiel, Aleksandra Włoch, Daniel Broda, Agata Bajek-Bil, Monika Stompor-Gorący

Institutions: University of Rzeszów, Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Rzeszów University of Technology

Language: English

Topic: Hops Chemistry and Applications

Subfield: Pharmacology

Field: Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,499