Effects of serum containing Fructus Cnidii and Psoralea corylifolia on highly metastatic human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231BO and bone marrow stromal cell line ST-2

Abstract

To explore the effects of different proportions of Fructus Cnidii (Shechuangzi) and Psoralea corylifolia (Buguzhi) on highly metastatic human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231BO and bone marrow stromal cell line ST-2 in vitro. Thirty-six female SD rats were randomly divided into 6 groups to prepare the drug-medicated sera by administering with different proportions of Fructus Cnidii and Psoralea corylifolia, including 4:0 group, 3:1 group, 1:1 group, 1:3 group, 0:4 group and control group. MDA-MB-231BO cells and ST-2 cells were cultured in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium containing drug-medicated serum. Inhibition rates of MDA-MB-231BO cells and ST-2 cells were measured by methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) method; migration ability of MDA-MB-231BO cells was tested by a cell migration experiment; alkaline phosphatase activity (ALP) of ST-2 cells was measured by using 4-nitrophenyl phosphate disodium salt, and mineralized nodule formation of ST-2 cells was measured by alizarin red staining. Sera contaning different proportions of Fructus Cnidii and Psoralea corylifolia inhibited the migration activity of MDA-MB-231BO cells as compared with the blank serum, and serum contaning Fructus Cnidii and Psoralea Corylifolia at proportion of 1:1 had the best function (P<0.01). Fructus Cnidii and Psoralea corylifolia at ratio of 1:1 also enhanced the ALP activity of ST2 cells (P<0.05) and increased the number of mineralized nodules of ST2 cells (P<0.01). Kidney-warming recipe of Fructus Cnidii and Psoralea corylifolia can inhibit proliferation and migration of MDA-MB-231BO cells and increase the activity of ST-2 cells.