Reassessing Chelerythrine as a Candidate Therapy for Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Abstract

Chelerythrine has recently been proposed as a therapeutic candidate for Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma (NPC) based on its reported effects on proliferation, apoptosis, migration, epithelial-mesenchymal transition and miR-21/PTEN/PI3K/AKT signaling. However, the central experimental models used to support this conclusion, namely the 5-8F and 6-10B cell lines, have been reported to be HeLa-derived, HeLa-contaminated or otherwise misidentified rather than authentic NPC cell lines. This raises major concerns regarding the disease-specific interpretation of the reported findings. Although the data may indicate pharmacological activity of chelerythrine in the tested cellular background, they do not establish anti-NPC efficacy. Similarly, xenograft experiments using 5-8F cells cannot be interpreted as valid NPC models if the implanted cells are misidentified. The proposed miR-21/PTEN/PI3K/AKT mechanism may be internally consistent but remains unvalidated in authentic NPC systems. To support translational claims, key experiments should be repeated in authenticated NPC models, ideally including Epstein-Barr virus-positive and Epstein-Barr virus-negative systems, patient-derived organoids or xenografts and models that recapitulate orthotopic tumor growth or metastatic disease. This short communication highlights the need for rigorous cell line authentication before proposing disease-specific therapeutic conclusions.