Helveticoside Exhibited p53-dependent Anticancer Activity Against Colorectal Cancer.

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

Investigation into the anti-cancer activities of natural products and their derivatives represents an efficient approach to develop safe and effective chemotherapeutic agents for the treatment of colorectal cancer. Helveticoside is a biologically active component of the seed extract of Descurainia sophia. This compound has been reported to regulate the genes related to cell proliferation and apoptosis in lung cancer cells, however its anticancer activity has not been fully explored yet.

METHODS:

Cell viability was evaluated by MTT and Trypan blue exclusion assay; cell apoptosis was measured by flow cytometry; mitochondrial membrane potential was determined by using JC1-mitochondrial membrane potential assay kit; protein levels were determined by western blot assay; in vivo tumor growth was assessed in a xenograft nude mice model.

RESULTS:

The current study demonstrated the in vitro anti-cancer activity of helveticoside against colorectal cancer using colorectal cancer cells SW480 and HCT116. Moreover, induction of apoptosis was found to mediate the cytotoxic action of helveticoside on SW480 and HCT116 cells. Based on the decrease in the mitochondrial membrane potential, upregulation of Bax, downregulation of Bcl-2 and cleavage of caspase-3 and 9, apoptosis was induced by helveticoside via mitochondria-mediated intrinsic apoptotic signaling pathways in colorectal cancer cells. Besides, using p53-knockout SW480 cells, the cytotoxic action of helveticoside was found to be p53-dependent. More importantly, administration of helveticoside inhibited the growth of HCT116 cells derived-colorectal cancer xenograft in mice via activation of apoptosis.

CONCLUSIONS:

Helveticoside might be a potential candidate for the development of novel chemotherapeutic agents for the treatment of colorectal cancer, while the potential toxic effects of helveticoside may be worthy of further investigations.

• Authors: Na An, Ying Sun, Ligang Ma, Shengli Shi, Xiaoke Zheng, Weisheng Feng, Zhiming Shan, Yongguang Han, Le Zhao, Huiming Wu
• Journal: Archives of medical research (Arch Med Res) Vol. 51 Issue 3 Pg. 224-232 (04 2020) ISSN: 1873-5487 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 32147288 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)
• Copyright: Copyright © 2020 IMSS. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Chemical References

• Antineoplastic Agents
• Bax protein, mouse
• Digitalis Glycosides
• Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2
• Strophanthins
• Trp53 protein, mouse
• Tumor Suppressor Protein p53
• bcl-2-Associated X Protein
• Bcl2 protein, mouse
• helveticoside
• Casp3 protein, mouse
• Casp9 protein, mouse
• Caspase 3
• Caspase 9

Topics

• Animals
• Antineoplastic Agents (adverse effects, pharmacology)
• Apoptosis (drug effects)
• Caspase 3 (metabolism)
• Caspase 9 (metabolism)
• Cell Line, Tumor
• Cell Proliferation (drug effects)
• Colorectal Neoplasms (drug therapy, pathology)
• Digitalis Glycosides (adverse effects, pharmacology)
• HCT116 Cells
• Humans
• Male
• Membrane Potential, Mitochondrial (drug effects)
• Mice
• Mice, Nude
• Mice, SCID
• Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 (metabolism)
• Strophanthins (adverse effects, pharmacology)
• Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 (genetics)
• Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays
• bcl-2-Associated X Protein (metabolism)