ANTI-INFLAMMATORY AND APOPTOSIS-STIMULATING PROPERTIES OF BIOACTIVE SUBSTANCES CONTAINED IN SWEET CLOVER AND CORN SILK IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF MALIGNANT CERVICAL TUMORS

Malignant cervical tumors are among the oncological diseases that pose a serious threat to women’s health. In their pathogenesis, high-risk oncogenic human papillomavirus infection, chronic inflammation, oxidative stress, weakened immune surveillance, cell-cycle disruption, and impairment of apoptotic mechanisms occupy a central place. In recent years, phytochemical sources, particularly sweet clover (Melilotus officinalis) and corn silk (Zea mays L. stigma), have attracted scientific interest because of the anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, immunomodulatory, and apoptosis-stimulating properties of their bioactive substances. Coumarins, flavonoids, phenolic acids, and saponins contained in sweet clover have been studied for their potential to reduce inflammatory mediators, support microcirculation, and decrease oxidative stress. Corn silk is rich in flavonoids, maysin, luteolin, polysaccharides, phenolic compounds, sterols, and trace elements, and in certain experimental studies its effects on NF-kB, PI3K/Akt, the caspase system, p53, and mitochondrial apoptotic pathways are discussed. This article analyzes the role of inflammation and apoptosis in the pathogenesis of malignant cervical tumors, the possible molecular mechanisms of bioactive compounds from sweet clover and corn silk, and their preventive and additional scientific-practical significance. The available evidence indicates that these plants should be evaluated not as independent therapeutic agents, but as phytobiological sources that may be studied in integration with evidence-based medicine, screening, HPV vaccination, and a healthy lifestyle.子宫颈恶性肿瘤是严重威胁女性健康的肿瘤疾病之一。其发病机制中，高危致癌性人乳头瘤病毒（human papillomavirus）感染、慢性炎症、氧化应激、免疫监视功能减弱、细胞周期紊乱以及细胞凋亡机制受损占据核心地位。近年来，植物化学物来源尤其是草木犀（Melilotus officinalis）与玉米须（Zea mays L. stigma）因其生物活性物质所具备的抗炎、抗氧化、免疫调节及促凋亡特性，受到科研界的广泛关注。草木犀中含有的香豆素类、黄酮类、酚酸类及皂苷类成分，其降低炎症介质、改善微循环、减轻氧化应激的潜力已得到研究探讨；玉米须则富含黄酮类、玉蜀黍苷（maysin）、木犀草素（luteolin）、多糖类、酚类化合物、甾类及微量元素，多项实验研究已探讨了其对核因子κB（NF-κB）、磷脂酰肌醇3-激酶/蛋白激酶B（PI3K/Akt）、半胱天冬酶系统（caspase system）、p53蛋白及线粒体凋亡通路的调控作用。本文系统分析了炎症与细胞凋亡在子宫颈恶性肿瘤发病机制中的作用、草木犀与玉米须生物活性成分的潜在分子机制，以及二者的预防与辅助科学实践价值。现有研究证据表明，不应将这两种植物作为独立治疗药物进行评估，而应作为植物生物学来源，与循证医学、宫颈癌筛查、人乳头瘤病毒疫苗接种及健康生活方式相结合开展相关研究。