Triphala Suppresses Growth and Migration of Human Gastric Carcinoma Cells In Vitro and in a Zebrafish Xenograft Model

Abstract

Objectives Triphala is an extensively prescribed traditional medicinal formula with potential therapeutic effects on various malignancies such as breast, colon, pancreas, prostate, ovarian, cervical, endometrial, and lymphatic cancer as well as melanoma. This study aimed to investigate Triphala for antitumor activities against gastric cancers. Methods In vitro tumor growth and migration of human gastric cancer cells were examined using the CCK-8 and Transwell assays, respectively. In vivo tumor progression was studied in a zebrafish xenograft model. The anticancer activity of Triphala was quantified as growth and metastasis inhibition rate. The underlying molecular mechanism was investigated by Western blotting. Results The CCK-8 and Transwell experiments indicated that Triphala significantly decreased tumor proliferation and suppressed cell migration in vitro. The zebrafish xenograft study revealed that administration of Triphala inhibited the xenograft growth and metastasis of transplanted carcinoma cells in vivo. Western blotting analysis demonstrated an inhibition of phosphorylation of EGFR, Akt, and ERK in the presence of Triphala, indicating that its antineoplastic mechanism is associated with the regulation of the EGFR/Akt/ERK signaling cascade. Conclusion Triphala is a promising antineoplastic agent for the treatment of gastric carcinomas with significant antiproliferative and antimetastatic activities.

Oxidative Stress and Cancer: Chemopreventive and Therapeutic Role of Triphala

“…It was also found that Triphala decreased the expression of phospho-Akt, phospho-p44/42, and phospho-NF-κB p56 in these gynecological cancer cells, which indicated that MAPK/ERK, PI3K/Akt/mTOR, and NF-κB/p53 signaling pathways were the possible mechanism of Triphala-induced apoptosis [60]. Besides its anti-proliferative and apoptotic effects, Triphala suppressed cell migration of cancer cells in vitro thus indicating its anti-metastatic potential [58].…”

“…[57] Inhibits gastric cancer cell proliferation and suppresses cell migration in vitro. [58] Exerts anti-proliferative, apoptotic and anti-migratory effects in colon cancer cells. [59] Inhibits proliferation of gynecological cancers cell with IC50 values of 98.28-101.23 µg/mL against SKOV-3, HeLa, and HEC-1B cells.…”

“…[57] Inhibits xenograft growth and metastasis of transplanted gastric carcinoma cells in vivo zebrafish xenograft model. [58] Oral feeding to mice at 40 mg/kg inhibits barcl-95 tumor growth transplanted in nude mice.…”

“…Extensive studies on Triphala have shown that it has preventive and therapeutic efficacy against malignancies such as breast, colon, pancreas, prostate, ovarian, cervical, endometrial, and lymphatic cancers as well as melanoma [58,60,61,63,74]. Although Triphala has been used for centuries against various ailments, recent in vitro, in vivo and human studies have demonstrated its safety and efficacy against multiple diseases including cancer.…”

“…In a zebrafish xenograft model, administration of Triphala inhibited the growth and metastasis of transplanted gastric carcinoma cells. The antineoplastic effect of Triphala was analyzed by western blotting and results demonstrated that it inhibited phosphorylation of EGFR, Akt, and ERK [58].…”