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Archive > Volume 28 Issue 8 > 2021,28(8):803-809. DOI:10.3872/j.issn.1007-385X.2021.08.006 Prev Next
Basic Research
Effects of Urtica dioica extract on malignant biological behaviors of breast cancer cells and its possible mechanism
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Abstract:
Objective: To investigate the effect of Urtica dioica extract on the proliferation, apoptosis, and cell cycle of breast cancer cells, and to primarily explore the possible mechanism. Methods: Breast cancer MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells were treated with different concentrations of Urtica dioica extract (0,1,2,4,8,16,32,64 mg/ml) for 24 h, and the cell viability was detected by MTT. The concentrations around the median inhibitory concentration, which were 5 and 10 mg/ml, were selected to treat MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells for 24 h, respectively. Plate clone formation assay was applied to detect cell proliferation, Flow cytometry was used to detect cell cycle and apoptosis, and WB was used to determine the expression of cell cycle and apoptosis-related proteins as well as PI3K/AKT signaling pathway-related proteins. AKT was simultaneously overexpressed in MCF-7 cells that were treated with 5 mg/ml Urtica dioica extract (Urtica+AKT group), and the cells transfected with empty vectors was used as control group (Urtica+vec group). The overexpression efficiency was detected by WB, and the effects of AKT overexpression on cell proliferation, cell cycle, and apoptosis were explored. Results: The viability of MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells in each Urtica treated group was significantly lower than that in the control group (P<0.05, P<0.01). Compared with the control group, the number of clone formation of breast cancer cells was significantly reduced, while the proportion of cells in the G0/G1 phase and the apoptosis rate were significantly increased in the 5 or 10 mg/ml Urtica treatment groups (P<0.05, P<0.01); in addition, the protein expression of P21 and Bax was significantly increased,while the protein expression of Cyclin D1, CDK4, Bcl2, p-PI3K and p-AKT was significantly decreased (P<0.05, P<0.01) in Urtica treatment groups. The protein expression of p-AKT and AKT in the Urtica+AKT group was significantly higher than that in the Urtica+vec group, and the number of clone formation and proportion of cells in the S phase and G2/M phase were higher than that in the Urtica+vec group, and the proportion of cells in the G0/G1 phase and the apoptosis rate were lower than that in the Urtica+vec group (P<0.05, P<0.01). Conclusion: The Urtica dioica extract can inhibit the proliferation and promote the apoptosis of breast cancer cells,and block the cells at G0/G1 phase, the mechanism of which may be related to the inhibition of PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.
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Project Supported:
Project supported by the Beijing Health Science and Technology Development Special Fund (No. 2017-1-230)
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