Exploring anticancer properties of Moringa and its derived by-products against colon cancer in humans and animals

Colon cancer continues to be the main cause of neoplasm-related morbidity and mortality in humans and animals worldwide, necessitating the exploration of new, efficient, and less toxic medicinal approaches. Depending on the adverse effects, including genetic toxicity, myelosuppression, hypertension, neurotoxicity, gastrointestinal toxicity, impaired chemosensitivity, nephrotoxicity, cardiovascular issues, neutropenia, etc., conventional therapies such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy need to be replaced by better therapeutic alternatives. This review aims to explore the potential therapeutic benefits of Moringa oleifera and its nano- formulations against colon cancer. Moringa, a medicinal plant rich in active chemicals, and its biosynthesized nanoparticles have the potential to hinder the growth and proliferation of colon cancerous cells through arresting cell division at different phases, promoting cell death by disrupting mitochondrial membrane potential, inducing oxidative stress leading to DNA damage, and hindering cancer-causing signalling pathways like PI3K/Akt, NF-κB, and ERK. Moreover, the review highlights that future research should evaluate the safety and efficacy of Moringa and its NPs through clinical trials, observing the effect of Moringa and its NPs on different molecular pathways, enhancing the production of NPs, assessing the use of combination therapy, and examining whether Moringa plays a role in treating other cancers. Although the findings of laboratory and animal studies are encouraging, further in vivo and clinical evaluation is needed to validate these findings in practical applications. In conclusion, Moringa and its NPs demonstrate promising potential for translation into therapeutic agents for CC.