Abrogation of Akt signaling by Isobavachalcone contributes to its anti-proliferative effects towards human cancer cells.

Akt signaling pathway has attracted much attention as a promising target for cancer therapeutics. Herein, we report that Isobavachalcone (IBC), a natural chalcone, potently abrogates Akt signaling and exerts anti-proliferative effects on several human cancer cell lines. Modeling results from the Sybyl/FlexiDock program suggest that IBC potentially binds to the ATP-binding pocket of Akt, which is confirmed by the observations that IBC inhibits Akt1 kinase in vitro. Further studies reveal that IBC significantly abates Akt phosphorylation at Ser-473 and Akt kinase activity in cells, which subsequently leads to inhibition of Akt downstream substrates and evokes significant levels of apoptosis associated with mitochondria pathway. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.