Pharmacological Effects of Genus Lonicera and its Application in Tumors of the Digestive System

Abstract

As an ingredient of Chinese herbal medicine with a long history of use, honeysuckle is popularly loved for its fragrant odor and elegant flower shape. The biological components extracted from Lonicera have the effectiveness of immunomodulation, antibacterial and antiviral, which can be taken as traditional Chinese herbs by decoction or com bined with novel biotechnology to treat cancer. As a kind of malignant tumor, digestive system tumors have complex causes, multiple pathologic types, wide range of invasion, and they are often accompanied by high cost of treatment and intolerable pain. As an economical and easily accepted form of cancer treatment, herbal medicine can be used as an adjunct to surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy to reduce the toxic side effects and pain of these routine treatments, thus improving the quality of life and even promoting the recovery of patients. This report reviewed the main bioactive components of Lonicera and their mechanism in cancer therapy, taking hepatocellular carcinoma, colon cancer and other cancers as examples. Even though a series of achievements have been made, as of now, experiments on honeysuckle in tumor therapy are still mostly focused on the cellular and animal levels, and more clinical trials are needed in the future to elucidate its specific mechanism of action through network pharmacology and molecular docking methods, so as to better assist in the treatment of cancer.