Abstract
Although previous studies confirmed that steaming and the fermentation process could significantly improve the cognitive-enhancement and neuroprotective effects of Codonopsis lanceolata, the anti-tumor efficacy of steamed C. lanceolata (SCL) and what mechanisms are involved remain largely unknown. The present study was designed to evaluate the anti-tumor effect in vivo of SCL in H22 tumor-bearing mice. The results clearly indicated that SCL could not only inhibit the tumor growth, but also prolong the survival time of H22 tumor-bearing mice. Besides, the serum levels of cytokines, such as interferon gamma (IFN-γ), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-2 (IL-2), were enhanced by SCL administration. The observations of Hoechst 33258 staining demonstrated that SCL was able to induce tumor cell apoptosis. Finally, immunohistochemical analysis revealed that SCL treatment significantly increased Bax expression and decreased Bcl-2 and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression of H22 tumor tissues in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, LC/MS analysis of SCL indicated that it mainly contained lobetyolin and six saponins. Taken all together, the findings in the present study clearly demonstrated that SCL inhibited the H22 tumor growth in vivo at least partly via improving the immune functions, inducing apoptosis and inhibiting angiogenesis.
Highlights
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a serious human cancer with a high incidence and mortality throughout the world [1]
The antitumor effect of steamed C. lanceolata (SCL) on H22 tumor-bearing mice is summarized in Table 1 and Figure 2A–B
We investigated the effect of SCL on the production of cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), IFN-γ, IL-2 and IL-6, in H22 tumor-bearing mice
Summary
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a serious human cancer with a high incidence and mortality throughout the world [1]. Codonopsis lanceolata (family Campanulaceae), a traditional medical plant, has been used in Asian countries for several inflammatory diseases, including asthma, tonsillitis, pharyngitis [7,8] and bronchitis [9,10] Chemical analyses of this herb have revealed that the bioactive constituents are saponins, polyphenols, tannins, triterpene, alkaloids and steroids [11]. There is growing evidence that the heat-processing method could affect the chemical profile of herbals and lead to changes of the bioactivities Among these heat-processing methods, steaming treatment is one of the most effective methods for Chinese medicines [16,17]. Red ginseng is widely known to contain more pharmacological activities than white ginseng [18,19] Prior to this investigation, several studies confirmed that steaming and the fermentation process significantly improved the cognitive-enhancement and neuroprotective effects of C. lanceolata [7,20,21]. The possible molecular mechanisms by which the SCL performs its anti-tumor actions were investigated
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