A lab-made plant compound slowed brain tumors in mice
Original title: D14, a β-carboline alkaloid derivative of dehydrocrenatidine, exerts anti-glioma effect by targeting SRC.
How far along is this research?
- Lab cells
- Animals
- Review
- Tested in people
This was done in animals, not people. Most findings at this stage never become treatments.
This was only done in lab cells and in mice.
The short version
A new compound made from a plant chemical slowed glioma: A tumor that starts in the glial cells. Those are the support cells of the brain and spinal cord. Gliomas are given a grade from 1 to 4. The grade says how the tumor is expected to act. See the glossary growth in mice.
What was studied. Scientists built nineteen new compounds from a plant chemical called dehydrocrenatidine. They tested them on six kinds of glioma: A tumor that starts in the glial cells. Those are the support cells of the brain and spinal cord. Gliomas are given a grade from 1 to 4. The grade says how the tumor is expected to act. See the glossary cells, including three kinds taken from patients.
What they found. One compound, named D14, killed glioma: A tumor that starts in the glial cells. Those are the support cells of the brain and spinal cord. Gliomas are given a grade from 1 to 4. The grade says how the tumor is expected to act. See the glossary cells the best. It made the cells die and caused damage inside them. In mice with brain tumors, D14 slowed tumor growth. It did not appear to harm the other organs of the mice.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: This points to a possible new way to attack glioma: A tumor that starts in the glial cells. Those are the support cells of the brain and spinal cord. Gliomas are given a grade from 1 to 4. The grade says how the tumor is expected to act. See the glossary. D14 seems to block a protein called SRC that helps tumor cells grow. Researchers now have a starting point for more study.
What it doesn't mean: This is not a treatment anyone can get. The work was done in cells in a dish and in mice. It has not been tested in people at all. Most compounds at this stage never become drugs. It is not a cure.
Source: PubMed, October 28, 2026 · Read the original
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