Browsing by Person "Detert, Katja"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2

The antiviral activity of polyphenols
(2025) Burkard, Markus; Piotrowsky, Alban; Leischner, Christian; Detert, Katja; Venturelli, Sascha; Marongiu, Luigi
Polyphenols are secondary metabolites produced by a large variety of plants. These compounds that comprise the class of phenolic acids, stilbenes, lignans, coumarins, flavonoids, and tannins have a wide range of employment, from food production to medical usages. Among the beneficial applications of polyphenols, their antiviral activity is gaining importance due to the increased prevalence of drug‐resistant viruses such as herpes and hepatitis B viruses. In the present review, we provide an overview of the most promising or commonly used antiviral polyphenols and their mechanisms of action focusing on their effects on enveloped viruses of clinical importance (double‐stranded linear or partially double‐stranded circular DNA viruses, negative sense single‐stranded RNA viruses with nonsegmented or segmented genomes, and positive sense single‐stranded RNA viruses). The present work emphasizes the relevance of polyphenols, in particular epigallocatechin‐3‐gallate and resveratrol, as alternative or supportive antivirals. Polyphenols could interfere with virtually all steps of viral infection, from the adsorption to the release of viral particles. The activity of polyphenols against viruses is especially relevant given the risk of widespread outbreaks associated with viruses, remarked by the recent COVID‐19 pandemic.
Role of iron and TfR1 in the application of high‑dose ascorbate against pancreatic cancer
(2026) Piotrowsky, Alban; Leischner, Christian; Schmieder, Hendrik; Detert, Katja; Schneider, Kathrin; Schulte, Johanna; Hammerschmidt, Sabrina; Marongiu, Luigi; Renner, Olga; Burkard, Markus; Venturelli, Sascha
Pancreatic cancer remains one of the deadliest tumor diseases with an urgent need for new therapy options. At the same time, the use of high‑dose vitamin C in cancer treatment has been investigated for decades. Despite promising in vitro and in vivo data and initial clinical studies, there is a need for optimization with regard to an ideal treatment regimen and suitable patient population for the use of high‑dose vitamin C. The aim of the present study was to evaluate for the first time the combination of high‑dose vitamin C with the administration of iron in three human pancreatic cancer cell lines and to determine the exact cell death mechanism. While the investigated cell lines showed a high susceptibility to ascorbate treatment, the combination treatment with FeCl3 generally led to a reduction in the ascorbate effect and in the formation of reactive oxygen species. The ascorbate‑induced cell death showed no signs of apoptosis but clear ferroptotic properties. Furthermore, treatment of the tumor cells with FeCl3 was accompanied by reduced expression of TfR1, preventing an increase in the intracellular labile iron pool. The present study provided valuable information on the mechanism of action of high‑dose vitamin C in pancreatic cancer, whereby a combination treatment with ferric iron in the context of tumor therapy is not recommended based on these data.