Initial Evaluation of Dihydroartemisinin (DHA), Metformin and Taro Extract in Combination with Cisplatin for Enhanced Cytotoxicity in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC) Cell Lines

Description

Godwin and colleagues test whether three add-on compounds can strengthen cisplatin chemotherapy against triple-negative breast cancer cells, in 2026 laboratory oncology research. The cancer type lacks the hormone and HER2 targets that guide gentler drugs, so chemotherapy carries the load. The team treated MDA-MB-231 cancer cells with cisplatin alone and combined with dihydroartemisinin, an antimalarial derivative; metformin, the diabetes drug; or taro extract, a plant preparation. They measured how many cancer cells each regimen killed in culture.

Cisplatin alone, at its half-maximal dose of 20 micromoles per liter, killed about 45 percent of the cancer cells in the assay. Each partner compound alone caused minimal death, but the pairs averaged about 60 percent cell death, beating cisplatin alone. The taro combination was strongest, reaching about 90 percent cell death across combination treatments. The three additives together without cisplatin killed under 10 percent, underscoring that the benefit depends on the chemotherapy backbone.

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Source: https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13375100