Mechanistic Language Modeling and Oxygenated 3D Screening Reveal Berberine and Enzalutamide Synergy in Resistant Prostate Cancer

Resistance to androgen receptor inhibitors remains a primary challenge in prostate cancer treatment, yet identifying synergistic co-therapies is hindered by immense combinatorial search spaces and the limited interpretability of predictive computation models. Here, we developed an integrated discovery-validation axis coupling knowledge-augmented large language models with oxygen-supplemented 3D spheroid assays. By leveraging inherent model stochasticity, our framework measures the degree of consensus across independent predictions to establish a formal metric for predictive accuracy. This principle enables high-throughput assessment of complex signaling crosstalk, yielding mechanistic rationales for all predictions and defining a high-confidence zone that minimizes experimental attrition. Utilizing this approach to screen 3,592 natural products, we identified a previously unrecognized synergy between berberine and enzalutamide that re-sensitizes resistant cells. Validation confirms that berberine perturbs the PI3K/AKT/mTOR and AMPK axes, a finding consistent with the mechanistic rationales computationally derived by the framework. Integrating interpretable AI with physiologically relevant 3D screening provides a scalable methodology for the rational discovery of synergistic therapies.

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Publication Details

Journal
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
Published
2026-01-26
DOI
https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.01.24.701539
Primary Topic
Berberine and alkaloids research
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Mechanistic Language Modeling and Oxygenated 3D Screening Reveal Berberine and Enzalutamide Synergy in Resistant Prostate Cancer

Cho-Jui Hsieh, Hyeonji Hwang, Johnny Diaz, Tanya Stoyanova et al.
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
Berberine and alkaloids research
article

Mechanistic Language Modeling and Oxygenated 3D Screening Reveal Berberine and Enzalutamide Synergy in Resistant Prostate Cancer

Cho-Jui Hsieh, Hyeonji Hwang, Johnny Diaz, Tanya Stoyanova, Ziyi Chen, Yunqi Hong, Katie Shi, Robert Damoiseaux, Alexandra Bermudez, Lina Kafadarian, Alan Levinson, Neil Y.C. Lin, Weihong Yan, Chih-Hui Lo, Andrew S. Goldstein, Liam Edwards
article en

Abstract

Resistance to androgen receptor inhibitors remains a primary challenge in prostate cancer treatment, yet identifying synergistic co-therapies is hindered by immense combinatorial search spaces and the limited interpretability of predictive computation models. Here, we developed an integrated discovery-validation axis coupling knowledge-augmented large language models with oxygen-supplemented 3D spheroid assays. By leveraging inherent model stochasticity, our framework measures the degree of consensus across independent predictions to establish a formal metric for predictive accuracy. This principle enables high-throughput assessment of complex signaling crosstalk, yielding mechanistic rationales for all predictions and defining a high-confidence zone that minimizes experimental attrition. Utilizing this approach to screen 3,592 natural products, we identified a previously unrecognized synergy between berberine and enzalutamide that re-sensitizes resistant cells. Validation confirms that berberine perturbs the PI3K/AKT/mTOR and AMPK axes, a finding consistent with the mechanistic rationales computationally derived by the framework. Integrating interpretable AI with physiologically relevant 3D screening provides a scalable methodology for the rational discovery of synergistic therapies.

bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
California NanoSystems Institute (US), University of California, Los Angeles (US), Broad Center (US), National Defense Medical Center (TW)
National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Defense, Prostate Cancer Foundation, Neuroendocrine Tumor Research Foundation, Cancer Research Coordinating Committee, National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, National Institute of General Medical Sciences, Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems, Division of Civil, Mechanical and Manufacturing Innovation, DOD Prostate Cancer Research Program
Openalex Percentile: Top 75%
Berberine and alkaloids research
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