{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,10]],"date-time":"2026-01-10T01:21:20Z","timestamp":1768008080708,"version":"3.49.0"},"reference-count":51,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,9]],"date-time":"2026-01-09T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1767916800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100007224","name":"Vietnam National Foundation for Science and Technology Development","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","award":["108.06-2021.02"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["108.06-2021.02"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100007224","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"crossref"}]},{"name":"Nguyen Tat Thanh University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS One"],"abstract":"<jats:p>\n                    <jats:italic>Cyperus amuricus<\/jats:italic>\n                    (Cyperaceae) has exhibited potential anticancer activity against hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), yet its molecular mechanisms and phytoconstituent interactions with oncogenic pathways remain underexplored. This study integrates\n                    <jats:italic>in vitro<\/jats:italic>\n                    cytotoxicity assays and molecular docking to evaluate the effects of\n                    <jats:italic>C. amuricus<\/jats:italic>\n                    fractionated extracts on HCC, focusing on PI3K\/AKT\/mTOR signaling axis. The ethyl acetate (EA) fraction selectively inhibited HepG2 cell proliferation (IC\n                    <jats:sub>50<\/jats:sub>\n                    \u2009=\u2009159.76 \u00b5g\/mL) with minimal toxicity to normal fibroblasts. Apoptotic features\u2014cell shrinkage, membrane blebbing, nuclear condensation, and DNA fragmentation\u2014were confirmed through DAPI staining and gel electrophoresis. Western blot analysis revealed dose-dependent suppression of phosphorylated Akt and p70S6K, indicating pathway inhibition. Molecular docking identified strong binding affinities between Cyperaceae-derived compounds and PI3K\/AKT\/mTOR targets, with luteolin 7-O-\u03b2-D-glucuronopyranoside-6\u2033-methyl ester blocked PI3K activation, vitexin bound AKT\u2019s allosteric site, and digitoxin targeted mTOR\u2019s ATP-binding pocket, showing comparable binding energies to reference ligands. These findings suggest\n                    <jats:italic>C. amuricus<\/jats:italic>\n                    as a promising candidate for natural product-based HCC therapy.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0340868","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,9]],"date-time":"2026-01-09T18:26:41Z","timestamp":1767983201000},"page":"e0340868","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Bioactivity of Cyperus amuricus extracts against hepatocellular carcinoma and molecular docking analysis targeting the PI3K\/AKT\/mTOR pathway"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"21","author":[{"given":"Thanh Luan","family":"Nguyen","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Thanh Khoi","family":"Tu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Thien-Vy","family":"Phan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Chanh M.","family":"Nguyen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Khoa D.","family":"Nguyen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6922-1627","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Minh Quan","family":"Pham","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7929-0618","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Hai Ha","family":"Pham 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