A novel anti-metastatic extract from Stellera chamaejasme Linn . suppresses breast tumor cell motility through inhibition of focal adhesion kinase

[...]to address these shortcomings, we extracted the active fractions from SCL (named ESC, that is the extract of SCL) and applied them in low doses for experiments, attempting to uncover its novel therapeutic mechanisms beyond cytotoxic effects. In the subcutaneous xenograft tumor model, in line with our hypothesis, 0.10 mg/kg or 1.00 mg/kg ESC showed a minimal influence on the living conditions and body weight of mice compared with the negative control [Supplementary Figure 1A, http://links.lww.com/CM9/B270]. [...]the low doses of ESC mildly repressed primary tumor growth, as demonstrated by the partially reduced primary tumor weight [Supplementary Figure 1B, http://links.lww.com/CM9/B270] and volume [Supplementary Figure 1C, D, http://links.lww.com/CM9/B270]. [...]the expression of the mesenchymal marker VIM and EMT-initiating factor Snail1 was downregulated [Supplementary Figure 3A,B, http://links.lww.com/CM9/B270]. [...]ESC may act as a tumor suppressor by regulating EMT-associated gene expression, providing a molecular basis for interfering with cellular invasiveness. [...]our results suggested that SCL may be a promising therapeutic candidate for targeting metastasis through its EMT-inhibitory effect.