The emerging role of herbal medicines in cancer by interfering with post-translational modification

Herbal medicines have a long history of comprehensive cancer treatment through various posttranslational modifications (PTMs). Recently, emerging evidence revealed that dysregulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and ROS-regulated signaling pathways influence cancer initiation, growth, and progression in a paradoxical role with either low levels or increasing levels of basal ROS. However, ROS-triggered modifications of target proteins in the face of ROS-mediated signal transduction are not fully understood in the anticancer therapies of herbal medicines. In this review, we briefly introduce the PTM-dependent regulations of herbal medicines, and then focus on the current ideals that targeting ROS-dependent PTMs