Abstract
Among the most important traditional medicinal fungi, Ganoderma lucidum has been used as a therapeutic agent for the treatment of numerous diseases, including cancer, in Oriental countries. The aim of this study is to investigate the anti-inflammatory, anticancer and anti-metastatic activities of Ganoderma lucidum extracts in melanoma and triple-negative breast cancer cells. Ganoderma lucidum extracts were prepared by using common organic solvents; MDA-MB 231 and B16-F10 cell lines were adopted as cellular models for triple-negative breast cancer and melanoma and characterized for cell viability, wound-healing assay and measurement of cytokines secreted by cancer cells under pro-inflammatory conditions (incubation with lipopolysaccharide, LPS) and pretreatment with Ganoderma lucidum extract at different concentrations. Our study demonstrates, for the first time, how Ganoderma lucidum extracts can significantly inhibit the release of IL-8, IL-6, MMP-2 and MMP-9 in cancer cells under pro-inflammatory condition. Interestingly, Ganoderma lucidum extracts significantly also decrease the viability of both cancer cells in a time- and concentration-dependent manner, with abilities to reduce cell migration over time, which is correlated with a lower release of matrix metalloproteases. Taken together, these results indicate the possible use of Ganoderma lucidum extract for the therapeutic management of melanoma and human triple-negative breast cancer.
Highlights
Ganoderma lucidum is a bitter fungus with a glossy exterior and a woody texture [1]
MDA-MB231, respectively, because they are very aggressive with a fast duplication time on the murine melanoma cell line B16F10 and the triple‐negative human breast cancer cell line
Many cytokines were reported to act as pro-inflammatory factors both in melanoma and triple-negative breast cancer: as an example, recent studies have shown that several cytokines are produced by cancer cells, or by the tumor microenvironment, in order to increase their progression and survival
Summary
Ganoderma lucidum is a bitter fungus with a glossy exterior and a woody texture [1]. It is commonly referred to as “lingzhi” in China, India and Japan, and it has been used in most Asian countries for the promotion of health and longevity for centuries [1,2]. Ganoderma lucidum contains a wide range of bioactive compounds associated with the promotion of good health [1,2] For all these reasons, Ganoderma lucidum is considered an interesting fungus, widely used in alternative medicine and proven to have numerous implications for use as a potential anticancer drug; further research needs to be done to quantify it for personalized medicine, especially in treating specific tumor diseases such as prostate adenocarcinoma (PCa) and other cancers [7]. The reports have not all been validated scientifically, and it is necessary to test every single pure component of the Ganoderma lucidum extracts to get convincing evidence about these features It is a prime example of an ancient remedy being of great relevance to the modern era. The aim of this study is to compare the effects of curcumin, considered as a positive control at a concentration of 10 μM, to treatment with Ganoderma lucidum extracts, testing different concentrations of these compounds and evaluating their effects on cell viability and pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion
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