Baicalein induces apoptosis of human cervical cancer HeLa cells in vitro

Abstract

A number of studies have shown that baicalein shows high antitumor activity in vitro and in vivo. In this study, the inhibitory effect of baicalein on human cervical cancer HeLa cells was studied in vitro. HeLa cells were treated with high (100 µg/ml) and low (50 µg/ml) doses of baicalein, and cell growth inhibition rates were examined by the MTT assay. The morphological changes of apoptotic cells were observed under the light and electron microscope, while the rate of cell apoptosis was examined by flow cytometry. The expression of apoptosis-related proteins was analyzed by western blot, and caspase-3 activation was examined by a caspase-3 activity assay and spectrophotometry. The results demonstrated that baicalein inhibits the proliferation of HeLa cells and induces apoptosis in a caspase-3-dependent pathway, through downregulation of the B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) protein and upregulation of the Bcl-2-associated X protein (Bax), Fas, Fas ligand (FasL) and caspase-8. Thus, we conclude that baicalein induces apoptosis of HeLa cells via the mitochondrial and the death receptor pathways. Cell apoptosis in HeLa cells was most likely promoted by the activation of the proteolytic enzyme caspase-3 in both pathways.

The downregulation of c‑Myc and its target gene hTERT is associated with the antiproliferative effects of baicalin on HL‑60 cells

“…Consistent with previous reports (6,8), the results of the present study demonstrated that caspase-3 and -9 were cleaved, and activated following baicalin treatment, demonstrating a role for mitochondria in the process of ongoing apoptosis in HL-60 cells. Though caspase-8 activation had been confirmed in cervical cancer HeLa cells (22) and in human colorectal carcinoma SW620 cells (23), the roles of caspase-8 in baicalin-induced apoptosis in human leukemia HL-60 cells remained to be clarified. In the present study, increased expression of cleaved caspase-8 was detected following exposure to baicalin for 12 h, and more notably after 24 h. Thus, it was postulated that, in addition to the intrinsic signaling pathway, the extrinsic pathway may also contribute to apoptosis induced by baicalin in HL-60 cells.…”

Fas-FasL expression and myocardial cell apoptosis in patients with viral myocarditis

“…The main manifestation of viral myocarditis during the first 7 days of viral infection is myocardial infiltration by NK cells and macrophages. Though they are meant to control the early stages of viral infection, infiltrating NK cells release perforin, which damages myocardial cells Lutz et al, 2014;Hsiao et al, 2015;Künkele et al, 2015;Peng et al, 2015). Between 7 and 14 days after the initial onset of the viral infection, most of the infiltrated cells are T-cells, which become CTLs when activated, and are programmed to kill target cells (Chen et al, 2014;Grygorczuk et al, 2015;Shi et al, 2015;Tao et al, 2015).…”

The Fascinating Effects of Baicalein on Cancer: A Review

“…In the past decade, there has been great progress in exploring the target mechanisms and signaling pathways of baicalein’s anti-cancer potential. The main molecular mechanisms of the anti-tumor effects of baicalein include inhibiting several cyclins or cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) to regulate the cell cycle [9], scavenging oxidative radicals, attenuating MAPK, Akt or mTOR activities [15], inducing apoptosis through activating caspase-9/-3 [11] and inhibiting tumor invasion and metastasis by reducing the expression of MMP-2/-9 [14]. As shown in Figure 2, we summarized the relevant biological mechanisms of baicalein involved in inhibiting various types of cancer (e.g., bladder cancer, breast cancer, cervical cancer, colorectal cancer, gastric cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma, osteosarcoma, multiple myeloma, melanoma/skin cancer, ovarian cancer, pancreatic cancer, prostate cancer, and lung cancer).…”

“…Baicalein is a flavone and an active ingredient in the traditional herb, Huang Qin. There is an accumulating amount of evidence that demonstrates baicalein’s role in treating and preventing various types of cancer [9,10,11,12,13,14,15]. In this review, we explored its chemical structure, properties, and possible biological mechanisms through which it acts.…”