Observational studies have demonstrated association of metformin with reduced cancer incidence and mortality in multiple cancer types, including gastrointestinal (GI) malignancies. Anti-neoplastic effects of metformin are believed through many mechanisms including activation of AMP-activated protein kinase, which controls mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) growth regulatory pathway.

Breast cancer is the most frequent malignancy in females. Due to its major impact on the population, this disease represents a critical public health problem that requires further research at the molecular level to define its prognosis and specific treatment. Basic research is required to accomplish this task and this involves cell lines as they can be widely used in many aspects of laboratory research and, particularly, as in vitro models in cancer research. MCF-7 is a commonly used breast cancer cell line, that has been promoted for more than 40 years by multiple research groups but its characteristics have never been gathered in a consistent review article. 

Plant virus nanoparticles (PVNPs) are increasingly recognized and studied for use in biomedical applications. PVNPs include plant virions with self-assembled capsid protein coats (PC) that encapsulate the virus genome, and virus-like particles (VLPs), a capsid without the viral genome.

According to the report published recently by the World Health Organization, the number of cancer cases in the world will increase to 22 million by 2030. So, the anticancer drug research and development is taking place in the direction where the new entities are developed which are low in toxicity and are with improved activity. Pyridine and their pyridine-biphenyl system derivatives represent a very important class of heterocyclic compounds, which have a diverse therapeutic area. Recently, many active compounds synthesized are very effective; natural products isolated with pyridine moiety have also shown to be potent towards cancer.

A hallmark of all cancers is the rapid rates of cell division associated with tumor growth. Rapid cell division is dependent upon the assembly and disassembly of microtubules, which are essential components of the mitotic spindle and are critical for the movement and separation of chromosomes during cell division. Microtubules are dynamic filaments that are composed of αβ-tubulin heterodimers. Microtubules also play key roles in determining cell shape, cell motility, and transportation of organelles within the cell. Blocking normal microtubular function leads to a failure of cells to progress through cell division and ultimately results in cell death.