Antitumor effects of total alkaloids isolated from Solanum nigrum in vitro and in vivo.

This study demonstrated that the total alkaloids isolated from the traditional Chinese medicinal herb Solanum nigrum Linne (SNL-A) inhibited the growth of human cervical cancer HeLa cells in culture medium with much lower toxicity to human normal lymphocytes. By means of HE staining and TUNEL assay, our results further revealed that SNL-A induced cell death by apoptosis. An immunohistochemical assay showed down-regulation of the bcl-2 and p53 genes and no obvious change of bax gene in the SNL-A treated cells. Subcutaneous injection of HeLa cells induced tumor formation in nude mice, and SNL-A showed a significant inhibitory effect on tumor formation. These results suggested that SNL-A may be a potential, natural apoptosis-inducing agent for cervical cancer.