Dendrobium officinalis inhibited tumor growth in non-small cell lung cancer.

BACKGROUND: Lung cancer is the most common and lethal tumor in the world, and the number of patients who die from lung cancer is growing steadily. Because of conventional chemotherapy drugs' poor tumor selectivity, side effects are significant. Conducting relevant studies and developing highly efficient and low toxicity anti-cancer drugs are urgently needed. Dendrobium officinale, which belongs to Orchidaceae aerophyte, has the characteristic of slow growth and lower natural propagation rate. In China, Dendrobium officinale has a very high value and is often referred to as the "gold of herbs". According to reports in the literature, the active ingredients of Dendrobium officinale have anticancer activity and inhibit neovascularization's potential. This study aimed to investigate the inhibitory effect of Dendrobium officinale in A549 lung cancer cells and its potential involvement in slowing tumor growth. METHODS: We cultured A549 cells and established a cancer xenograft model in nude mice. Infused stomach with Dendrobium officinale was applied to the nude mouse model. Tumor volume and body weight were recorded. RESULTS: The results show that, compared with the negative control group, the gross tumor volume (GTV) of treatment groups decreased (all P<0.05), while the effect of the high concentration of the Dendrobium officinale was more significant than that found in the medium and low group. We believe that Dendrobium officinale exhibits a promising antitumor effect in the nude mouse tumor model. The best treatment concentrations for the nude mouse tumor model were achieved when treatment with the drug began about 7-15 days, and was more significant in high concentrations. CONCLUSIONS: Dendrobium officinale has potent effects of inhibiting tumor on the nude mouse tumor model.

Bone regeneration with micro/nano hybrid-structured biphasic calcium phosphate bioceramics at segmental bone defect and the induced immunoregulation of MSCs.

Adequate bone regeneration has been difficult to achieve at segmental bone defects caused by disease. The surface structure and phase composition of calcium phosphate bioceramic are crucial for its bioactivity and osteoinductivity. In the present study, biphasic calcium phosphate (BCP) bioceramics composed of micro-whiskers and nanoparticles hybrid-structured surface (hBCP) were fabricated via a hydrothermal reaction. The in vivo long bone defect model of beagle dogs implanted with hBCP bioceramics achieved a higher quality regenerated bone as compared to the traditional smooth-surface BCP control group. After a 12-week implantation period, more new bone formation within the implanted material and a higher fracture load were observed in the hBCP group (p < 0.05 vs. control). In addition, the local bone integration efficacy, as determined by nanoindentation, showed a significantly closer elastic modulus of the implanted hBCP bioceramics to that of the natural bone adjacent. Finally, in vitro gene microarray analysis of the mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) co-cultured with two bioceramics showed that the hBCP group induced a drastic downregulation of the genes associated with inflammatory response, which was never documented in previous studies regarding biomaterials with a micro/nano hybrid structure. The tumor necrosis factor (TNF) signalling pathway was the most involved and preferentially inhibited by the hBCP material. Collectively, the findings suggested that the micro/nano hybrid-structured bioceramics augmented local bone regeneration at segmental bone defects and presented a potential alternative to autologous bone grafts.

Biomimetic fabrication of a three-level hierarchical calcium phosphate/collagen/hydroxyapatite scaffold for bone tissue engineering.

A three-level hierarchical calcium phosphate/collagen/hydroxyapatite (CaP/Col/HAp) scaffold for bone tissue engineering was developed using biomimetic synthesis. Porous CaP ceramics were first prepared as substrate materials to mimic the porous bone structure. A second-level Col network was then composited into porous CaP ceramics by vacuum infusion. Finally, a third-level HAp layer was achieved by biomimetic mineralization. The three-level hierarchical biomimetic scaffold was characterized using scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive x-ray spectra, x-ray diffraction and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and the mechanical properties of the scaffold were evaluated using dynamic mechanical analysis. The results show that this scaffold exhibits a similar structure and composition to natural bone tissues. Furthermore, this three-level hierarchical biomimetic scaffold showed enhanced mechanical strength compared with pure porous CaP scaffolds. The biocompatibility and osteoinductivity of the biomimetic scaffolds were evaluated using in vitro and in vivo tests. Cell culture results indicated the good biocompatibility of this biomimetic scaffold. Faster and increased bone formation was observed in these scaffolds following a six-month implantation in the dorsal muscles of rabbits, indicating that this biomimetic scaffold exhibits better osteoinductivity than common CaP scaffolds.