Pien Tze Huang suppresses IL-6-inducible STAT3 activation in human colon carcinoma cells through induction of SOCS3

IL-6/STAT3 is one of the most critical cellular signal transduction pathways known to malfunction in colorectal cancer (CRC). As a target gene of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) signaling, suppressor of cytokine signaling 3 (SOCS3) can be quickly induced by interleukin-6 (IL-6) stimulation but it then strongly inhibits IL-6-mediated STAT3 activation, functioning as a negative feedback regulator of the IL-6/STAT3 pathway. Aberrant activation of STAT3 and/or reduced expression of SOCS are strongly correlated with carcinogenesis, which therefore becomes a promising target for the development of novel anticancer chemotherapies. Pien Tze Huang (PZH) is a well-known traditional Chinese formula that was first prescribed by a royal physician 450 years ago in the Ming Dynasty. It has been used in China and Southeast Asia for centuries as a folk remedy for various types of cancer including CRC. However, the precise mechanism of its antitumor activity remains largely unclear. In the present study, we found that PZH could significantly and dose-dependently inhibit IL-6-mediated increase of STAT3 phosphorylation levels and transcriptional activity in the human colon carcinoma HT-29 cells, resulting in the suppression of cell proliferation and the induction of apoptosis. In addition, PZH treatment profoundly inhibited IL-6-induced upregulation of cyclin D1 and Bcl-2, two key target genes of the STAT3 pathway. Moreover, PZH treatment increased the expression of SOCS3. These results suggest that PZH could effectively inhibit proliferation and promote apoptosis of human colon carcinoma cells via modulation of the IL-6/STAT3 signaling pathway and its target genes.