Structure based docking studies of GLUT4 towards exploring selected phytochemicals from Somalia xanthocarpum as a therapeutic target for the treatment of cancer.

In recent years, there has been an exponential increase in the global burden of cancer which has been associated with several factors including environmental influence, aging, diet, infectious agents, hormonal imbalance and chronic inflammation, among others. Cancerous cells utilize more glucose for its proliferation and survival than normal cells. Thus, the regulation of glucose consumption of cancerous cells through the inhibition of glucose transporter-4-protein (GLUT4) encoded by solute carrier family-2-member-4-gene (Slc2a4) by selected phytochemicals from Somalia xanthocarpum may serve as a new therapeutic candidate for the treatment of cancer. The seven identified potential inhibitors of GLUT4 from Somalia xanthocarpum were retrieved from PubChem database. Examination of their drug-likeness, toxicity prediction and molecular docking studies of these compounds with GLUT4 were carried out using online tools such as Molinspiration, PreADMET V.2.0 and Patchdock server. The findings revealed that, five out of the seven compounds fulfil oral drugability of Lipinski's rule of five (RO5) while two slightly meet the criteria of RO5. Conversely, five of the compounds are predicted to be mutagen while the remaining two are predicted to be safe for the body. Additionally, stigmasterol glucoside has higher binding-affinity (7590) with GLUT4 when compared to doxorubicin (6600) the control. These findings suggest that stigmasterol glucoside from Somalia xanthocarpum could be a promising therapeutic agent with better therapeutic efficacy than doxorubicin in the treatment of cancer via the inhibition of GLUT4.