Inhibitory effects of mistletoe alkali on salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma cells

Abstract

Mistletoe alkali plays an important role in salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma(SACC) cell proliferation, apoptosis and invasion. Mistletoe alkali shows potent anticaner property. In this paper, immunocytochemical and immunofluorescence staining were employed to evaluate the expression levels of proliferating cell nuclear antigen( PCNA), Caspase 3, Caspase 8 and Caspase 9. Apoptosis was detected by acridine orange/ethidium bromide (AO/EB) staining, cell invasion ability was assessed by Boyden Chamber assay. Pretreatment with mistletoe alkali markedly decreased PCNA expression in SACC cells in a dose-dependent manner(P<0.001) and also led to increase the expression of Caspase 3, Caspase 8 and Caspase 9 in SACC cells compared with control group(P<0.001). Number of apoptotic cells increased dramatically in mistletoe alkali group(P<0.001). In Boyden Chamber assay, mistletoe alkali treatment could inhibit SACC cells to penetrate the artificial basement membrane compared with control group(P<0.01). Mistletoe alkali remarkably inhibited the proliferation and invasion of SACC cells and induced the apoptosis of SACC cells. These results provide an insight into the mechanisms of anticancer effects of mistletoe alkali, and highlight the potential clinical application of it.