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. 2017 Mar 31;8(28):46635–46651. doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.16743

Figure 2. Common antitumor mechanisms of cationic AMPs classified as ACPs.

Figure 2

ACPs (anticancer peptides), or cationic AMPs with anticancer properties, selectively recognize cancer cells by electrostatic interactions with negatively charged phospholipids on the surface of eukaryotic cells [e.g., PS (phosphatidylserine)]. Some ACPs demonstrate in vivo efficacy (e.g., *MGB2, Gomesin, K6L9, LTX-315); ACPs tend to kill cancer cells by membrane perturbation (blue/cyan), although some (e.g., KLA, Pardaxin) may penetrate the target cell and disrupt the mitochondrial membrane resulting in apoptosis (green/purple). (How?), mechanism unclear; brown perpendicular bar, inhibition; CTL, cytotoxic T-Lymphocytes; M, mitochondria, SER, smooth endoplasmic reticulum; RER, rough endoplasmic reticulum; R, ribosomes; N, nucleus; V, vacuole; L, lysosome; only cholesterol and other lipids are shown; membrane proteins are omitted for clarity.