Probing the Antitumor Mechanism of Solanum nigrum L. Aqueous Extract against Human Breast Cancer MCF7 Cells.

Solanum nigrum L. is one of the major medicinal plants used to treat cancer. However, the functional mechanism of S. nigrum L. extract is still unknown in spite of numerous studies on its active components. In this study, we probed the potential anticancer mechanism of the aqueous extract of S. nigrum L. (AESN) towards human breast cancer cell line MCF7. At a concentration of 10 g/L, AESN caused 43% cytotoxicity, inhibited the migration, and suppressed the activities of hexokinase and pyruvate kinase by about 30% and 40%, respectively, towards the MCF7 cells. RT2-PCR analysis of a panel of 89 caner-related genes identified 13 upregulated and eight downregulated genes (>2-folds) in MCF7 cells upon AESN treatment. Gene ontology (GO) and functional disease ontology (FunDO) analyses show that the antitumor function of S. nigrum L. involves multiple genes and these genes are shared across other diseases or disorders.

Evaluating the cytotoxic effects of the water extracts of four anticancer herbs against human malignant melanoma cells.

Malignant melanoma (MM) is the most dangerous type of skin cancer, killing more than 1,100 people each year in Canada. Prognosis for late stage and recurrent MM is extremely poor due to insensitivity to chemotherapy drugs, and thus many patients seek complementary and alternative medicines. In this study, we examined four commonly used anticancer herbs in traditional Chinese medicine, Hedyotis diffusa, Scutellaria barbata, Lobelia chinensis, and Solanum nigrum, for their in vitro antitumor effects toward human MM cell line A-375. The crude water extract of S. nigrum (1 g of dry herb in 100 mL water) and its 2-fold dilution caused 52.8%±13.0% and 17.3%±2.7% cytotoxicity in A-375 cells, respectively (P<0.01). The crude water extract of H. diffusa caused 11.1%±12.4% cytotoxicity in A-375 cells with no statistical significance (P>0.05). Higher concentrated formulation might be needed for H. diffusa to exert its cytotoxic effect against A-375 cells. No cytotoxicity was observed in A-375 cells treated with crude water extract of S. barbata and L. chinensis. Further high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectroscopy analysis of the herbal extracts implicated that S. nigrum and H. diffusa might have adopted the same bioactive components for their cytotoxic effects in spite of belonging to two different plant families. We also showed that the crude water extract of S. nigrum reduced intracellular reactive oxygen species generation in A-375 cells, which may lead to a cytostatic effect. Furthermore, synergistic effect was achieved when crude water extract of S. nigrum was coadministered with temozolomide, a chemotherapy drug for skin cancer.

Hedyotis diffusa water extract diminished the cytotoxic effects of chemotherapy drugs against human breast cancer MCF7 cells.

Hedyotis diffusa is a Chinese herbal medicine widely used in combination with other herbal medicines such as Scutellaria barbata to treat various types of cancer. Late-stage and recurrent cancer patients usually use H. diffusa during chemotherapy in expecting to achieve additive or synergistic therapeutic effects. Several classes of active ingredients, including anthraquinones, iridoid glucosides and stigmasterols. have been isolated and characterized from H. diffusa. In the current study, we isolated alkaloid/flavonoid from H diffusa and showed that the crude alkaloid/flavonoid extract rather than its three major components possessed antitumor activity against human breast cancer cell line MCF7. Co-administration of H. diffusa water extract diminished the cytotoxicities of chemotherapy drugs doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide and docetaxel towards the MCF7 cells, implicating that H. diffusa should not be used during breast cancer chemotherapy.

Comparison of creatine supplementation before versus after supervised resistance training in healthy older adults.

This study was performed to compare the effects of creatine supplementation (CR) before vs. after supervised resistance training (RT) in healthy older adults. Participants were randomized to one of two groups: CR-Before (0.1g•kg(-1) creatine before + 0.1g•kg(-1) placebo [rice flour] after RT, n = 11) or CR-After (placebo before + creatine after RT, n = 11). Resistance training (RT) was performed 3 days/week, on nonconsecutive days, for 12 weeks. Prior to and following the study, measures were taken for body composition, maximum strength, muscle protein catabolism, and kidney function. Over the 12-week training period, both groups experienced a significant increase in whole-body lean tissue mass, limb muscle thickness, and upper and lower body strength and a decrease in muscle protein catabolism (p < 0.001), with no differences between groups. There was no change in kidney function over time. Changes in muscle mass or strength are similar when creatine is ingested before or after supervised resistance training in older adults.

Anticancer activity of the PR domain of tumor suppressor RIZ1.

Human tumor suppressor gene RIZ encodes two protein products, tumor suppressor RIZ1 and proto-oncoprotein RIZ2, which regulate cellular functions in a Yin-Yang fashion. The only structural difference between them is that RIZ2 lacks the N-terminal PR domain. In this study, we showed that RIZ1 mRNA expression level was elevated in stage IV of eight different types of cancer (stage III for prostate cancer), indicating that RIZ1 might play an important role in tumor metastasis, and the PR domain alone possessed anticancer activity.