Venom-Derived Peptides Targeting Pancreatic Cancer

Abstract

Pancreatic cancer is a fatal tumor with a 5-year survival rate below 10%. Pancreatic cancer is commonly diagnosed late, with distant metastases. Thus, surgical cures are rare. First-line surgery is often followed by adjuvant chemotherapy. The development of non-surgical pancreatic cancer treatments is very urgent. However, therapeutic resistance continues to affect pancreatic cancer therapy and prognosis. This requires a detailed understanding of therapy resistance processes. Additionally, novel therapeutic methods must be actively investigated as treatments. Pancreatic cancer treatment with natural products has advanced anti-tumor drugs. Several clinical trials have indicated that natural compounds and their derivatives slow pancreatic cancer growth. These effects are achieved by inhibiting angiogenesis, cell migration, and proliferation. Natural products also induce apoptosis and cell death to stop the cell cycle. Animal venom contains bioactive chemicals like amino acids, biogenic amines, nucleotides, inorganic salts, toxic peptides and enzymes that may be medicinal. Recent research has shown that animal venom inhibits many cancer cell types through various pathways. This is done by inhibiting ion channels or binding to cancer cell membrane targets. Animal venom inhibits metastasis and invasion. They also activate intracellular apoptosis and cell cycle arrest pathways. This review article provides insight into the anticancer mechanism of certain venom peptides isolated from various venomous animals targeting pancreatic cancer.