Agaricus blazei extract FA2bβ enhances the sensitivity of K562/ADR cells through the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signalling pathway

Abstract

The acidic RNA protein complex FA2bβ, isolated from Agaricus blazei Murill (AbM), has proapoptotic effects and antiproliferative potency in several cancers. In the present study, we explored whether FA2bβ can boost the sensitivity of adriamycin (ADR) to multidrug-resistant chronic myelogenous leukaemia (CML) K562/ADR cells. A bioinformatics search identified differentially expressed genes (DEGs) for enrichment analyses. The synergistic antiproliferative effect of FA2bβ and ADR was investigated using a CCK8 assay. Flow cytometry was used to evaluate the cell apoptosis rate, cell cycle and autofluorescence intensity of ADR. Western blotting was used to analyse the mechanism of anti-leukaemia action. There was a synergistic effect of FA2bβ and ADR on the chemosensitivity of K562/ADR cells, showing increased apoptosis and intracellular ADR in K562/ADR cells but downregulated P-glycoprotein (P-gp) and phosphorylation of PI3K, Akt and mTOR. FA2bβ improved the sensitivity of ADR to MDR K562/ADR cells, perhaps by regulating the PI3k/Akt signalling pathway and downregulating P-gp. These results suggest that FA2bβ may be a combination therapy for CML in the future.