Quercetin induces apoptosis and enhances 5-FU therapeutic efficacy in hepatocellular carcinoma

Abstract

Quercetin (Q), a flavonoid compound, which is obtained in variety of fruits, seeds, and vegetables, has been reported to possess many pharmacological properties including cancer-preventive and anticancer effects. However, studies on the anticancer effects and underlying mechanisms of Q in human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are still limited. The present study is conducted to investigate the anticancer efficacy and adjuvant chemotherapy action of Q in HCC. HCC cell lines HepG2 and SMCC-7721 were treated with different concentrations of Q. The antiproliferative effects of Q were measured by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT), and the apoptosis and cell cycle dynamics were assessed by flow cytometry; the expression of apoptosis-associated proteins were evaluated by Western blot and immunohistochemistry staining; the tumor growth in vivo was evaluated in a xenograft mouse model. Our results showed that Q effectively inhibited human HCC cell proliferation and induced apoptosis by upregulating the expression of Bad and Bax and downregulating the expression of Bcl-2 and Survivin in vitro. Furthermore, Q obviously inhibited the tumor growth and enhanced the 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) therapeutic efficacy in vitro and in vivo. Taken together, our findings highlight that Q effectively inhibited the growth of tumor and enhanced the sensitivity to thermotherapy, indicating Q is a potential treatment option for HCC.

Natural Compounds as Occult Ototoxins? Ginkgo biloba Flavonoids Moderately Damage Lateral Line Hair Cells

“…Pharmacological inhibition of Bax conferred substantial protection from each flavonoid, demonstrating a shared mechanism of action with neomycin-induced damage. These data are also consistent with prior studies demonstrating flavonoid-induced Bax upregulation in cancer cells (Duo et al 2012;Dai et al 2015;Zhang et al 2015). In flavonoid-treated cancer cells, Bax expression is linked to increased ROS generation, and quer and kaemp increase ROS in multiple cell lines (Sahu and Gray 1994;Metodiewa et al 1999;Zhang et al 2015).…”

Natural Polyphenols for Prevention and Treatment of Cancer

“…Importantly, quercetin (i.p. 40 mg/kg/day) also exhibited excellent inhibition effects on tumor growth in mice [99]. …”

Inhibition of Orai1‐mediated Ca2+ entry enhances chemosensitivity of HepG2 hepatocarcinoma cells to 5‐fluorouracil

“…5‐FU is the most commonly used chemotherapeutic drug for the treatment of a variety of tumour by induction of cancer cells apoptosis . As reported in many solid tumours, most patients exert high chemosensitivity to 5‐FU at the beginning of therapy.…”