{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,6]],"date-time":"2026-09-06T11:00:27Z","timestamp":1788692427980,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":25,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"23","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,22]],"date-time":"2025-11-22T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1763769600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100002858","name":"China Postdoctoral Science Foundation","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["2024M751129"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2024M751129"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100002858","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"name":"Dongguan Prefabricated Food Innovation Development and Quality Control Key Laboratory"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Nanomaterials"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common malignant tumor worldwide, with morbidity and mortality rates increasing annually. Consequently, the development of safe and effective natural anti-tumor drugs has become a critical research focus. Lignin, a polyphenolic polymer abundant in nature, possesses a unique chemical structure that imparts antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and tumor cell-related bioactivities, demonstrating remarkable potential in the prevention and treatment of CRC. In this study, we investigated the anti-tumor cell effects of coffee grounds lignin nanoparticles (CLN), prepared using aqueous ethanol extraction from coffee waste, against three CRC cell lines (HCT116, HT29, SW620). The results indicated that CLN potently inhibited the proliferation of all three CRC cell lines mentioned above. This research supports the transformation of lignin from natural products into innovative anti-colorectal cancer agent, offering new insights for the development of novel therapeutic strategies characterized by low toxicity and high efficacy. As research advances and technology continues to innovate, lignin-based nanoparticles emerge as key natural products in CRC therapy, offering new hope for patients and paving the way for the application of natural products in cancer therapy.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nano15231754","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,24]],"date-time":"2025-11-24T10:24:17Z","timestamp":1763979857000},"page":"1754","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Lignin Nanoparticles from Coffee Grounds Enhance the Cytotoxicity of Coffee Grounds Lignin and Induce Apoptosis in Colorectal Cancer (CRC) Cell Lines"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"given":"Shiwen","family":"Liu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Food Science and Engineering, Institute of Food Safety and Nutrition, Guangdong Engineering Technology Center of Food Safety Molecular Rapid Detection, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China"},{"name":"College of Materials Science and Engineering, Qiqihar University, Qiqihar 161006, China"},{"name":"School of Life and Health Technology, Dongguan University of Technology, Dongguan 523808, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0004-1541-7658","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Xin","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Life and Health Technology, Dongguan University of Technology, Dongguan 523808, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jihui","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Life and Health Technology, Dongguan University of Technology, Dongguan 523808, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xuan","family":"Chen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Life and Health Technology, Dongguan University of Technology, Dongguan 523808, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xiaoqin","family":"Pan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Life and Health Technology, Dongguan University of Technology, Dongguan 523808, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Junqiu","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Life and Health Technology, Dongguan University of Technology, Dongguan 523808, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6724-9623","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jingyu","family":"Xu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Materials Science and Engineering, Qiqihar University, Qiqihar 161006, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Weibin","family":"Bai","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Food Science and Engineering, Institute of Food Safety and Nutrition, Guangdong Engineering Technology Center of Food Safety Molecular Rapid Detection, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,22]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"300","DOI":"10.1200\/JCO.2025.43.4_suppl.300","article-title":"Risk factors for mortality and financial burdens in patients with colon cancer","volume":"43","author":"Zahid","year":"2025","journal-title":"J. Clin. Oncol."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"317","DOI":"10.1038\/s41568-025-00812-z","article-title":"Salmonella, the insidious contributor to gallbladder and colon cancers","volume":"25","author":"Neefjes","year":"2025","journal-title":"Nat. Rev. Cancer"},{"key":"ref_3","unstructured":"(2024, February 01). WHO Media Team, Global Cancer Burden Growing, Amidst Mounting Need for Services. Available online: https:\/\/www.who.int\/news\/item\/01-02-2024-global-cancer-burden-growing--amidst-mounting-need-for-services."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Shao, H., Liu, M., Jiang, H., and Zhang, Y. (2025). Polysaccharide-based drug delivery targeted approach for colon cancer treatment: A comprehensive review. Int. J. Biol. Macromol., 302.","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijbiomac.2024.139177"},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"16","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jconrel.2021.06.008","article-title":"Treating colon cancers with a non-conventional yet strategic approach: An overview of various nanoparticulate systems","volume":"336","author":"Bhaskaran","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Control. Release"},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Long, D., Mao, C., Zhang, W., Zhu, Y., and Xu, Y. (2025). Natural products for the treatment of ulcerative colitis: Focus on the JAK\/STAT pathway. Front. Immunol., 16.","DOI":"10.3389\/fimmu.2025.1538302"},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Luo, Y., Zhang, G., Hu, C., Huang, L., Wang, D., Chen, Z., and Wang, Y. (2024). The Role of Natural Products from Herbal Medicine in TLR4 Signaling for Colorectal Cancer Treatment. Molecules, 29.","DOI":"10.3390\/molecules29122727"},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Islam, F., Mitra, S., Emran, T., Khan, Z., Nath, N., Das Sharma, R., Awadh, R., Park, M., and Kim, B. (2022). Natural Small Molecules in Gastrointestinal Tract and Associated Cancers: Molecular Insights and Targeted Therapies. Molecules, 27.","DOI":"10.3390\/molecules27175686"},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Islam, M., Akash, S., Rahman, M., Nowrin, F., Akter, T., Shohag, S., Rauf, A., Aljohani, A., and Simal-Gandara, J. (2022). Colon cancer and colorectal cancer: Prevention and treatment by potential natural products. Chemico-Biol. Interactions, 368.","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cbi.2022.110170"},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"10783","DOI":"10.1021\/acs.jmedchem.4c00278","article-title":"Structural Optimization of Marine Natural Product Pretrichodermamide B for the Treatment of Colon Cancer by Targeting the JAK\/STAT3 Signaling Pathway","volume":"67","author":"Zhou","year":"2024","journal-title":"J. Med. Chem."},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"120860","DOI":"10.1016\/j.indcrop.2025.120860","article-title":"Preparation of a novel fluidized bed of recoverable lignin nanospheres with iodine vapor trapping advantage and exploration of its iodine trapping mechanism","volume":"227","author":"Xu","year":"2025","journal-title":"Ind. Crops Prod."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Cao, Q., Zhu, H., Xu, J., Zhang, M., Xiao, T., Xu, S., and Du, B. (2024). Research progress in the preparation of lignin-based carbon nanofibers for supercapacitors using electrospinning technology: A review. Int. J. Biol. Macromol., 273.","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijbiomac.2024.133037"},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2300024","DOI":"10.1002\/adhm.202300024","article-title":"Nano-Strategies for Lignin Biomaterials toward Cancer Therapy","volume":"12","author":"Sathasivam","year":"2023","journal-title":"Adv. Healthc. Mater."},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"123270","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijpharm.2023.123270","article-title":"CD44 mediated colon cancer targeting mutlifaceted lignin nanoparticles: Synthesis, in vitro characterization and in vivo efficacy studies","volume":"643","author":"Siddiqui","year":"2023","journal-title":"Int. J. Pharm."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"453","DOI":"10.1146\/annurev-physiol-042022-025619","article-title":"The Role of the Microbiome in the Etiopathogenesis of Colon Cancer","volume":"86","author":"Tekle","year":"2024","journal-title":"Annu. Rev. Physiol."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2854","DOI":"10.1038\/s41467-025-57965-6","article-title":"A protease-cleavable liposome for co-delivery of anti-PD-L1 and doxorubicin for colon cancer therapy in mice","volume":"16","author":"Liu","year":"2025","journal-title":"Nat. Commun."},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Wu, C., Zhang, X., Wang, M., Sun, J., Chen, J., Guan, Y., and Pang, X. (2025). Trypsin-instructed bioactive peptide nanodrugs with cascading transformations to improve chemotherapy against colon cancer. J. Nanobiotechnol., 23.","DOI":"10.1186\/s12951-025-03143-1"},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1509","DOI":"10.1038\/s41591-025-03579-w","article-title":"Circulating tumor DNA analysis guiding adjuvant therapy in stage II colon cancer: 5-year outcomes of the randomized DYNAMIC trial","volume":"31","author":"Tie","year":"2025","journal-title":"Nat. Med."},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"102","DOI":"10.1186\/s12943-025-02293-y","article-title":"C1Q+ TPP1+ macrophages promote colon cancer progression through SETD8-driven p53 methylation","volume":"24","author":"Veschi","year":"2025","journal-title":"Mol. Cancer"},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"132917","DOI":"10.1016\/j.seppur.2025.132917","article-title":"Preparation of lignin nanofibers with surface-attached COF structures through an electrostatic spinning process for applications in complex environments containing elemental iodine","volume":"368","author":"Xu","year":"2025","journal-title":"Sep. Purif. Technol."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Rai, D., Medicherla, K., Pooja, D., and Kulhari, H. (2023). Dendrimer-Mediated Delivery of Anticancer Drugs for Colon Cancer Treatment. Pharmaceutics, 15.","DOI":"10.3390\/pharmaceutics15030801"},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"159367","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cej.2025.159367","article-title":"Silver\/jellyfish-like mesoporous polydopamine nanomotor with concentration-dependent synergistic antibacterial activity","volume":"505","author":"Li","year":"2025","journal-title":"Chem. Eng. J."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Li, J., Gao, G., Ouyang, W., Huang, J., Liu, H., and Li, J. (2025). A rhodamine-coordinated iridium complex to overcome cisplatin-resistant cancer via regulating mitochondrial function triggered apoptosis and ferroptosis. Redox Biol., 81.","DOI":"10.1016\/j.redox.2025.103536"},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2414307","DOI":"10.1002\/advs.202414307","article-title":"Cryoshocked Adipocytes Mediated Dual-Modal Strategy Combining Photodynamic Therapy and Triptolide Palmitate for Pulmonary Metastatic Melanoma Treatment","volume":"12","author":"Li","year":"2025","journal-title":"Adv. Sci."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e70091","DOI":"10.1002\/fsn3.70091","article-title":"Isoflavones: Promising Natural Agent for Cancer Prevention and Treatment","volume":"13","author":"Hassan","year":"2025","journal-title":"Food Sci. Nutr."}],"container-title":["Nanomaterials"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2079-4991\/15\/23\/1754\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,24]],"date-time":"2025-11-24T11:02:03Z","timestamp":1763982123000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2079-4991\/15\/23\/1754"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,22]]},"references-count":25,"journal-issue":{"issue":"23","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,12]]}},"alternative-id":["nano15231754"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/nano15231754","relation":{},"ISSN":["2079-4991"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2079-4991","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,22]]}}}