Anemoside B4 exerts anti-cancer effect by inducing apoptosis and autophagy through inhibiton of PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway in hepatocellular carcinoma

American Journal of Translational Research

Jin Zhang¹  Zhuo Xiang²  Shuyi Xue³  Yu Zhou⁴  Yang Liu⁵ 

[1] College of Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical College of Dalian Medical University, Dalian 116000, Liaoning, China;Department of Hand Surgery, Hospital 971 of The Navy of Chinese PLA, Qingdao 266071, Shandong, China;Department of Pharmacology, Pharmaceutical College of Qingdao University, Qingdao 266021, Shandong, China;Department of Pharmacy, Hospital 971 of The Navy of Chinese PLA, Qingdao 266071, Shandong, China;Institute of Integrative Medicine, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266003, Shandong, China

关键词: Anemoside B4;    hepatocellular carcinoma;    apoptosis;    autophagy;    PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway;   

DOI  :  

学科分类：医学（综合）

来源: e-Century Publishing Corporation

【 摘 要 】

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide and novel therapeutic approaches are urgently required. Anemoside B4 (AB4) is a compound extracted from Pulsatilla chinensis (P. chinensis). Previous studies have indicated that P. chinensis extract P. chinensis saponins has anti-cancer activity. However, the pharmacological effect of AB4 in cancer is largely unknown. In this study, we investigated the anti-cancer efficacy of AB4 in HCC. We used CCK-8 assay and colony formation assay to evaluate the cytotoxicity of AB4 and found that this agent markedly inhibited SMMC7721 cell proliferation. By using a panel of morphological and molecular experiments, we reported that AB4 induced HCC SMMC7721 cell apoptosis and autophagy. Notably, AB4 treatment acts on the Bcl-2-caspase-3 pathway and Beclin-1-LC3-p62 pathway, thereby regulates both apoptosis and autophagy. Finally, we showed that AB4-induced apoptosis and autophagy converges at the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling. AB4 treatment inhibits this signaling transduction pathway and leads to HCC cell death. Collectively, our study highlighted the anti-cancer efficacy of AB4 and suggested that AB4 might be a novel way to treat HCC.

【 授权许可】

CC BY-NC