A plant compound slowed brain tumor cells in lab dishes
Original title: Salidroside inhibits glioma cell migration and proliferation through CYP2E1-neuroglobin-cytochrome c mediated redox axis.
How far along is this research?
- Lab cells
- Animals
- Review
- Tested in people
This was done on cells in a lab, not in people. It is a very early step.
This was only done on cells in a lab, not in people.
The short version
A natural compound called salidroside 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 cells grown in a lab.
What was studied. Researchers treated human glioblastoma: A glioma that is given grade 4. Grade 4 is the highest grade there is. The tumor grows fast. Treatment usually starts soon after it is found. It often means surgery, and then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary cells, called U87MG and LN229, with salidroside in lab dishes. They also measured a protein called neuroglobin in 101 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 brain tissue samples and 5 normal brain samples.
What they found. Cells treated with salidroside grew less. They also moved and spread less in the dish. The treated cells showed signs of stress and damage inside, and their energy centers stopped working well. In the tissue samples, more advanced tumors had less of the neuroglobin protein.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: This gives scientists an idea of how salidroside might harm 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. It may help shape future lab work and later studies. It does not change any care a patient gets today.
What it doesn't mean: This work was done on cells in dishes, on stored tissue samples, and on a computer model. It was not tested in people, so nobody knows if it is safe or helpful for a patient. Taking a Rhodiola rosea supplement is not a treatment for a brain tumor. This is very early science and it is not a cure.
Source: PubMed, October 1, 2026 · Read the original
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