The Anti-Gastric Cancer Mechanisms of Major Flavonoid Components from Scutellarin Barbata

Abstract

Gastric cancer is a highly prevalent malignancy of the digestive system worldwide, posing a serious threat to human health, particularly in East Asia where the burden is substantial. With advances in traditional Chinese medicine research, Scutellaria barbata has attracted considerable attention due to its heat-clearing, detoxifying, and antitumor properties, with flavonoid constituents recognized as the primary bioactive compounds responsible for its anticancer effects. Current studies indicate that flavonoids from S. barbata can inhibit gastric cancer cell proliferation, induce apoptosis and autophagy, and suppress metastasis and angiogenesis by modulating multiple signaling pathways at both cellular and animal levels. Although research on this topic is increasing, the mechanisms of individual flavonoid components and their clinical validation remain relatively limited. This review systematically summarizes the progress of major flavonoid compounds from S. barbata, including luteolin, apigenin, naringenin, and wogonoside, in gastric cancer research, analyzing their effects and mechanisms in cellular experiments, animal models, and clinical applications, while also delineating the regulatory patterns of different signaling pathways involved in their anticancer activity. The results suggest that S. barbata flavonoids exert multi-targeted synergistic effects with potential clinical value. This study provides a reference for further exploration of the pharmacological mechanisms of S. barbata flavonoids and their development as novel anticancer agents, while highlighting current limitations such as unclear targets of individual constituents and insufficient clinical evidence. Future research should integrate multi-omics approaches with clinical trials to investigate the crosstalk among signaling pathways and advance translational applications.