Combination treatment with sorafenib and wh-4 additively suppresses the proliferation of liver cancer cells.

Abstract

Sorafenib is currently used to treat hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the development of chemoresistance to sorafenib is a major limitation for sorafenib-based therapy in patients with HCC. In the present study, the effect of the combination therapy of sorafenib and wh-4 on the proliferation of liver cancer cells was investigated. The results showed that sorafenib with wh-4 additively suppressed the proliferation of liver cancer cells. The colony formation of liver cancer cells decreased significantly in response to the combination treatment of sorafenib with wh-4, and it also induced the apoptosis of liver cancer cells. Western blot analysis demonstrated decreased expression of Bcl2, and increased expression of Bax in liver cancer cells treated with a combination of sorafenib and wh-4. Moreover, the migration of liver cancer cells was inhibited. The combination treatment of sorafenib with wh-4 reduced the expression levels of ABCB1 and ABCG2 which are responsible for resistance. Finally, STAT3 overexpression abolished the proliferation inhibition effect of sorafenib with wh-4 on liver cancer cells, and sorafenib and wh-4 suppressed the proliferation of liver cancer cells by STAT3 pathway. Together, these results suggest that sorafenib-wh4 combination treatment is a potential novel therapeutic approach to suppress the proliferation of liver cancer cells.

• Authors: Su-Hong Chen, Dan-Dan Xu, Peng-Jun Zhou, Yao Wang, Qiu-Ying Liu, Zhe Ren, Zhong Liu, Xia Wang, Hui-Qing Huang, Xue Xue, Ying Wang, Yi-Fei Wang
• Journal: Experimental and therapeutic medicine (Exp Ther Med) Vol. 23 Issue 3 Pg. 232 (Mar 2022) ISSN: 1792-1015 [Electronic] Greece
• PMID: 35222709 (Publication Type: Journal Article)
• Copyright: Copyright: © Chen et al.