麦门冬合千金苇茎汤抑制A549细胞增殖作用及其机制

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Traditional Chinese medicine is an approach for malignant tumor treatment with Chinese characteristics. The aim of this study is to investigate the inhibitory effects of Maimendong & qianjinweijing decoction extract on A549 human lung cancer cell line proliferation and explored its probable molecular mechanisms. METHODS: A549 cells were treated with drugs in different does and time. The effects on the proliferation of A549 cells were detected by MT assay and clonogenic assay in vitro. Cell cycle was analyzed by?ow cytometry. Morphological changes of the apoptosis of cancer cells were observed by Hochest 33258 staining. Western blot was performed to detect apoptosis-related gene expression. RESULTS: Ethyl acetate extract inhibited the growth of A549 cells but not in HFL-1 cells. Compared with controls, administration of 10 μg/mL ethyl acetate extract resulted in 73.86% decrease in colony formation (P < 0.01), apoptotic rates of 33.86% (P < 0.01), and morphological changes of apoptosis in A549 cells. The expression of anti-apoptotic protein EGFR and ERK were signifcantly down-regulated (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Ethyl acetate extract might inhibit proliferation and induce apoptosis in A549 cells via downregulation of EGFR/ERK signal transduction pathway. Terefore, ethyl acetate extract should be further separated in order to identify the material fundamentals on anti-cancer effect.