Cucurbitacin E induces cell cycle G2/M phase arrest and apoptosis in triple negative breast cancer.

Abstract

Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a highly aggressive form of breast cancer resistant to many common treatments. In this study, we compared the effects of 12 phytochemical drugs on four cancer cell lines, and noticed that Cucurbitacin E (CuE) significantly inhibited TNBC cell growth by inducing cell cycle G2/M phase arrest and apoptosis. CuE reduced expression of Cyclin D1, Survivin, XIAP, Bcl2, and Mcl-1 in MDA-MB-468 and SW527, and within MDA-MB-468, CuE significantly increased activation of JNK and inhibited activation of AKT and ERK. Collectively, these results suggest that CuE may be a viable compound for developing novel TNBC therapeutics.

• Authors: Yanjie Kong, Jianchao Chen, Zhongmei Zhou, Houjun Xia, Ming-Hua Qiu, Ceshi Chen
• Journal: PloS one (PLoS One) Vol. 9 Issue 7 Pg. e103760 ( 2014) ISSN: 1932-6203 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 25072848 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic
• Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins
• Cyclins
• Plant Extracts
• STAT3 Transcription Factor
• Triterpenes
• Extracellular Signal-Regulated MAP Kinases
• JNK Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases
• cucurbitacin E

Topics

• Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic (chemistry, isolation & purification, pharmacology)
• Apoptosis (drug effects)
• Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins (metabolism)
• Cell Line, Tumor
• Cyclins (metabolism)
• Extracellular Signal-Regulated MAP Kinases (metabolism)
• Female
• G2 Phase Cell Cycle Checkpoints (drug effects)
• Humans
• JNK Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases (metabolism)
• M Phase Cell Cycle Checkpoints (drug effects)
• Orchidaceae (chemistry, metabolism)
• Plant Extracts (chemistry)
• STAT3 Transcription Factor (metabolism)
• Triple Negative Breast Neoplasms (metabolism, pathology)
• Triterpenes (chemistry, isolation & purification, pharmacology)