Scheme 1.

A pictorial summary of the anticancer therapeutic activity of 4-AAQB, alone or in combination with FOLFOX against CSCs in CRC cells. 4-AAQB inhibits the aberrant expression of SOD2 through the re-expression of hsa-miR-324-5p, the negative modulation of pluripotency transcription factors, the augmentation of the BAX/BCL-xL ratio, and the reprogramming of malignant colorectal cancer cells from the aggressive mesenchymal phenotype to a relatively benign epithelial phenotype, subsequently enhancing the sensitivity of the cancer cells to conventional chemotherapy and facilitating better prognosis.