The
glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common malignant
brain tumor in adults. Despite combination treatments of radiation and
chemotherapy, the survival periods are very short. Therefore, this study was conducted to assess the potential of
ginsenoside F2 (F2) to treat GBM. In in vitro experiments with
glioblastoma cells U373MG, F2 showed the cytotoxic effect with IC50 of 50 μg/mL through apoptosis, confirmed by
DNA condensation and fragmentation. The cell population of cell cycle sub-G1 as indicative of apoptosis was also increased. In xenograft model in SD rats, F2 at dosage of 35 mg/kg weight was intravenously injected every two days. This reduced the
tumor growth in magnetic resonance imaging images. The immunohistochemistry revealed that the anticancer activity might be mediated through inhibition of proliferation judged by Ki67 and apoptosis induced by activation of
caspase-3 and -8. And the lowered expression of CD31 showed the reduction in blood vessel densities. The expression of
matrix metalloproteinase-9 for invasion of
cancer was also inhibited. The cell populations with cancer stem cell markers of CD133 and
nestin were reduced. The results of this study suggested that F2 could be a new potential chemotherapeutic
drug for GBM treatment by inhibiting the growth and invasion of
cancer.