Effects of p-cresol, a uremic toxin, on cancer cells

BACKGROUND: Though p-cresol exists at a low concentration in the blood, it accumulates in various organs of uremic patients. Previous research has shown that the p-cresol promoted bladder cancer cell invasion and migration. This study aims to see if p-cresol had similar effects on kidney cancer cells and liver cancer cells. METHODS: For 48 hours, 786-O human renal cancer cells and HepG2 human liver cancer cells were treated with p-cresol at concentrations of 0, 10, 20, 40, and 70 µM. The effects of p-cresol on cell viability, apoptosis, migration, and invasion were then analyzed using the CCK-8, TUNEL, and Transwell migration/invasion assays, respectively. RESULTS: P-cresol at 0 to 70 µM for 48 hours had no significant toxic effects on 786-O cells or HepG2 cells. We chose 40 µM p-cresol for 48 hours for the following experiment. The viability and proliferation of 786-O cells and HepG2 cells were unaffected after 48 hours of treatment, with 40 µM p-cresol. However, 40 µM p-cresol for 48 hours promoted HepG2 cell migration and invasion but did not have the same effect on the 786-O cell line. CONCLUSIONS: P-cresol may be responsible for HepG2 cells’ malignant biological behavior. Because the liver is the primary site of p-cresol metabolism, it is important to study the responses of cancer cells in the liver to p-cresol.