Ethylacetate extract from Tetrastigma hemsleyanum inhibits proliferation and induces apoptosis in HepG2 and SMMC-7721 cells

This study aimed to investigate the effect of ethylacetate extract from (EET) on the proliferation and apoptosis of HepG2 and SMMC-7721 cells and determine the underlying mechanisms. HepG2 and SMMC-7721 cells were cultured in vitro until the exponential growth phase and then treated with different concentrations of EET for 24 h. We performed a colony forming assay to determine colony forming ability, CCK8 assay to detect cell proliferation, Annexin V-FITC/PI double staining to analyze cell apoptosis, and Western blot to measure the protein expression of Caspase-3, Bcl-2, and Bax. EET significantly inhibited the proliferation of HepG2 and SMMC-7721 cells in a concentration- and time-dependent manner (