RESUMO
Borax, a boron compound and a salt of boric acid, is known to inhibit the growth of tumor cells. HepG2 cells have been shown to be clearly susceptible to the anti-proliferative effects of borax. However, the specific mechanisms regulating this effect are poorly understood. This study aimed to investigate the pathways underlying the growth inhibition induced by borax in HepG2 cells. The effects of borax on HepG2 cell viability were characterized using MTT. Apoptosis was also verified by annexin V/propidium iodide staining. JC-1 dye and western blotting techniques were used to measure mitochondrial membrane potential and p53, Bax, and Bcl-2 protein expression, respectively. Relevant mRNA levels were measured by qRT-PCR. Borax inhibited the proliferation of HepG2 cells in a time- and dose-dependent manner in vitro. The apoptotic process triggered by borax involved the upregulation of p53 and Bax and the downregulation of Bcl-2, which was confirmed by a change in the mitochondrial membrane potential. These results elucidate a borax-induced apoptotic pathway in HepG2 cells that involves the upregulation of p53 and Bax and the downregulation of Bcl-2.
Assuntos
Apoptose/efeitos dos fármacos , Boratos/farmacologia , Citostáticos/farmacologia , Proteínas Proto-Oncogênicas c-bcl-2/metabolismo , Proteína Supressora de Tumor p53/metabolismo , Proteína X Associada a bcl-2/metabolismo , Boratos/toxicidade , Citostáticos/toxicidade , Regulação para Baixo , Células Hep G2 , Humanos , Proteínas Proto-Oncogênicas c-bcl-2/genética , Proteína Supressora de Tumor p53/genética , Proteína X Associada a bcl-2/genéticaRESUMO
In Mexico, as in many other countries, traditional medicine is used for the treatment of several diseases. In particular, Amphipterygium adstringens infusion is used for gastritis, gastric ulcers, and gastric cancer. Extracts from this tree have microbicidal effects against Helicobacter pylori, an important risk factor for gastric cancer development. Anacardic acids are constituents of A. adstringens, and 6-pentadecyl salicylic acid (6-PSA) is the most abundant. However, there is a lack of information regarding the effects of 6-PSA on cancer cells. Therefore, we investigated whether 6-PSA has differential effects on the induction of genotoxicity, cytostaticity, and apoptosis in normal human peripheral blood mononucleated cells (PBMCs), bone marrow polychromatic erythrocytes of Balb/c mice, and human transformed cell lines derived from both gastric cancer (AGS cells) and leukaemia (K562 cells). Treatment with 6-PSA (30-150 µM) reduced the viability of AGS and K562 cells together with a moderate, but significant, increase in the frequency of micronucleated cells and the induction of DNA breakage (Comet Assay). Moreover, 6-PSA increased the apoptosis rate in both the AGS and K562 cell lines in a caspase 8-dependent manner. In contrast, neither cytotoxicity nor genotoxicity were observed in PBMCs or bone marrow polychromatic erythrocytes of Balb/c mice after treatment with low doses of 6-PSA (0.2-2.0 mg/Kg). Instead, 6-PSA treatment resulted in the inhibition of PBMC proliferation, which was reversible after the compound was removed. Additionally, 6-PSA treatments (2-20 mg/Kg) increased the frequency of mature polychromatic erythrocytes in the bone marrow, suggesting a possible effect on the differentiation process of immune cells. The present results indicate that 6-PSA induces cytotoxicity and moderate genotoxicity, together with an increase in the apoptosis rate, in a caspase 8-dependent manner in gastric cancer cells. In contrast, a low toxicity was observed when PBMCs were exposed to 6-PSA.
Assuntos
Ácidos Anacárdicos/toxicidade , Citostáticos/toxicidade , Mucosa Gástrica/efeitos dos fármacos , Leucócitos Mononucleares/efeitos dos fármacos , Mutagênicos/toxicidade , Animais , Apoptose/efeitos dos fármacos , Células da Medula Óssea/citologia , Células da Medula Óssea/efeitos dos fármacos , Células da Medula Óssea/metabolismo , Caspase 8/metabolismo , Diferenciação Celular/efeitos dos fármacos , Linhagem Celular Transformada , Proliferação de Células/efeitos dos fármacos , Sobrevivência Celular/efeitos dos fármacos , Ensaio Cometa , Feminino , Mucosa Gástrica/metabolismo , Mucosa Gástrica/patologia , Humanos , Leucócitos Mononucleares/citologia , Leucócitos Mononucleares/metabolismo , Camundongos , Camundongos Endogâmicos BALB C , Desnaturação de Ácido Nucleico/efeitos dos fármacosRESUMO
Biological models have long been used to establish the cytotoxicity and cytostaticity of natural and/or synthetic chemical compounds. Current assay techniques, however, typically require the use of expensive technological equipment or chemical reagents, or they lack adequate testing sensitivity. The poissoner quantitative drop test (PQDT) assay is a sensitive, inexpensive and accurate method for evaluation of cytotoxicity and/or cytostatic effects of multiple chemical compounds in a single experiment. In this study, the sensitivity of the PQDT assay was evaluated in a wild-type Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain using 4-nitroquinoline-N-oxide (4-NQO) and methyl methanesulfonate (MMS), both cytotoxic and genotoxic standard compounds, and cytostatic 5-fluorouracil, an antitumoral drug. Yeast cell colony growth was measured in culture media containing increasing concentrations of the three chemical agents. The results showed that the PQDT assay was able to clearly differentiate the cytotoxic effect of 4-NQO and MMS from the cytostatic effect of 5-fluorouracil. Interestingly, the cytostatic effect of 5-fluorouracil followed an exponential decay curve with increasing concentrations, a phenomenon not previously described for this drug. The PQDT assay, in this sense, can be applied not only for cytotoxic/cytostatic assays, but also for pharmacodynamic studies using Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a model.