Natural Product Driven Activation of UCP1 and Tumor Metabolic Suppression: Integrating Thermogenic Nutrient Competition with Cancer Metabolic Reprogramming

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

• Level A · Stronger Clinical Evidence
• Level B · Emerging clinical evidence with positive signals
• Level C · Early human research exploring benefits
• Level D · Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studies
• Emerging · Emerging topic under active research

Abstract (original English)

Metabolic reprogramming allows cancer cells to proliferate rapidly, survive nutrient limitation, and resist stress, making tumor metabolism an important therapeutic target. However, pharmacological inhibition of metabolic enzymes often causes systemic toxicity and compensatory pathway activation. To overcome these limitations, recent studies have highlighted an alternative host-centered strategy based on increasing systemic energy expenditure. Recent studies highlight an alternative strategy in which the host increases energy expenditure through uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) dependent thermogenesis, thereby lowering systemic glucose, fatty acid, and nucleotide availability for tumors. Engineered beige adipocytes overexpressing UCP1, PR domain-containing protein 16 (PRDM16), or peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator 1 alpha (PPARGC1A/PGC1A) suppress tumor growth through nutrient competition, suggesting that activating endogenous UCP1 may provide a non-genetic and physiologically aligned anticancer approach. Building on this concept, natural products such as polyphenols, terpenoids, alkaloids, and carotenoids have emerged as promising UCP1 activators that stimulate beige and brown adipocyte thermogenesis through pathways involving AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), sirtuin 1 (SIRT1), PGC1A, PRDM16, and mitochondrial biogenesis. In parallel, computational stu

Evidence level

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

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