Berberine induces apoptosis via ROS generation in PANC-1 and MIA-PaCa2 pancreatic cell lines.

Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death. Gemcitabine is widely used as a chemotherapeutic agent for the treatment of pancreatic cancer, but the prognosis is still poor. Berberine, an isoquinoline alkaloid extracted from a variety of natural herbs, possesses a variety of pharmacological properties including anticancer effects. In this study, we investigated the anticancer effects of berberine and compared its use with that of gemcitabine in the pancreatic cancer cell lines PANC-1 and MIA-PaCa2. Berberine inhibited cell growth in a dose-dependent manner by inducing cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. After berberine treatment, the G1 phase of PANC-1 cells increased by 10% compared to control cells, and the G1 phase of MIA-PaCa2 cells was increased by 2%. Whereas gemcitabine exerts antiproliferation effects through S-phase arrest, our results showed that berberine inhibited proliferation by inducing G1-phase arrest. Berberine-induced apoptosis of PANC-1 and MIA-PaCa2 cells increased by 7 and 2% compared to control cells, respectively. Notably, berberine had a greater apoptotic effect in PANC-1 cells than gemcitabine. Upon treatment of PANC-1 and MIA-PaCa2 with berberine at a half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50), apoptosis was induced by a mechanism that involved the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) rather than caspase 3/7 activation. Our findings showed that berberine had anti-cancer effects and may be an effective drug for pancreatic cancer chemotherapy.

Naphthoquinones from Onosma paniculata induce cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis in melanoma Cells.

Activity-guided fractionation of a petroleum ether-soluble extract of the roots of Onosma paniculata, which has been shown to affect the cell cycle and to induce apoptosis in melanoma cells, led to the isolation of several shikonin derivatives, namely, ß-hydroxyisovalerylshikonin (1), acetylshikonin (2), dimethylacrylshikonin (3), and a mixture of α-methylbutyrylshikonin and isovalerylshikonin (4+5). All compounds exhibited strong cytotoxicity against eight cancer cell lines and MRC-5 lung fibroblasts, with 3 found to possess the most potent cytotoxicity toward four melanoma cell lines (SBcl2, WM35, WM9, and WM164). Furthermore, 3 and the mixture of 4+5 were found to interfere with cell-cycle progression in these cell lines and led to an increasing number of cells in the subG1 region as well as to caspase-3/7 activation, indicating apoptotic cell death.

Identification of epigallocatechin-3-gallate in green tea polyphenols as a potent inducer of p53-dependent apoptosis in the human lung cancer cell line A549.

The effects of green tea polyphenols on cultured cancer cells have been well characterized, especially the effects of epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCg), since EGCg suppresses oncogenic signaling pathways and induces cell cycle arrest or apoptosis by regulating cell cycle-associated proteins. In the present study, we attempted to identify signaling pathways or target molecules regulated by each of or a mixture of green tea polyphenols, including epicatechin (EC), epicatechin-3-gallate (ECg), epigallocatechin (EGC), and EGCg, in the human lung cancer cell line A549. ECg, EGC, and a catechin mixture, in addition to EGCg, significantly decreased cell viability. In contrast, caspase 3/7 activity, an apoptosis indicator, was specifically induced by EGCg. By conducting a series of luciferase-based reporter assays, we revealed that the catechin mixture only up-regulates the p53 reporter. EGCg was a more potent inducer of p53-dependent transcription, and this induction was further supported by the induced level of p53 protein. RNA interference (RNAi)-mediated p53 knockdown completely abolished EGCg-induced apoptosis. Finally, a proteome and western blot analysis using approximately 70 different antibodies failed to detect up-regulated proteins in catechin mixture-treated A549 cells. Taken together, these results indicate that EGCg, among several green tea polyphenols, is a potent apoptosis inducer that functions exclusively through a p53-dependent pathway in A549 cells.

Lactational coumestrol exposure increases ovarian apoptosis in adult rats.

This study is the first to examine the increased apoptosis in the adult rat ovary after lactational exposure to coumestrol (COU), a potent phytoestrogen. Lactating dams were gavaged at doses of 0.01, 0.1, 1, and 10 mg/kg COU during the lactation period and the reproductive effects of female pups were investigated in young adults. Rats were sacrificed at postnatal days (PND) 81-84. Ovarian weights were reduced significantly at 0.1 and 1.0 mg/kg COU. The reduction in the ovarian weight occurred in parallel with an increase in the apoptosis at PND 135-140. A marked dose-dependent increase in the expressions of active caspase-3 and -7 was observed in ovarian granulosa cells. Immunostaining for active caspase-3 and the TUNEL staining of apoptotic cells were also increased in ovaries exposed to COU in a dose-dependent manner. These results suggest new sights into the effect of lactational exposure to COU on the female reproductive health.

Antiproliferative effects of citrus limonoids against human neuroblastoma and colonic adenocarcinoma cells.

Limonoids, a family of triterpenoids with putative anticancer properties, occur in fruits as glucosides and aglycones. Both highly purified forms were isolated from seeds and molasses of citrus fruits and tested for toxic effects against two human cancer cell lines, SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma and Caco-2 colonic adenocarcinoma, and a noncancerous mammalian epithelial Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells. Viability, as quantified by 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol- 2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium reduction and light microscopy, was shortened significantly (P < 0.001) in cancer cells exposed to aglycones, viz., limonin, nomilin, obacunone, and deacetylnomilin. SH-SY5Y cells were more sensitive than Caco-2 cells to the limonoids, whereas noncancerous CHO cells showed hardly any change in cell numbers or cell morphology. Aglycone toxicity was dose dependent, but below the killing potential of glucosides. This observation correlated with a slower rate of induction of caspase 3/7 activity by aglycones. A flow cytometric analysis of SH-SY5Y cells treated with glucosides and aglycones showed an increased ploidy, which is consistent with enhancing chromosomal abnormalities. The results confirm that limonoids exert a strong multifaceted lethal action against cancer cells, but are relatively ineffective against CHO cells. Of the two, metabolites derived from glucosides are the more likely progenitors of an apoptosis response in situ.