Growth inhibitory effects and molecular mechanisms of crotoxin treatment in esophageal Eca-109 cells and transplanted tumors in nude mice

Aim: To investigate the antitumor actions of the Crotalus durissus neurotoxin (crotoxin) on human esophageal carcinoma (Eca-109) cells in vitro and transplanted esophageal Eca-109 tumors in nude mice. Methods: The growth-inhibitory effect was analyzed in Eca-109 cells using Ml-r assay. Cell morpholo...

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Veröffentlicht in:Acta pharmacologica Sinica 2013-02, Vol.34 (2), p.295-300
Hauptverfasser: He, Jing-kang, Wu, Xiang-sheng, Wang, Yan, Han, Rong, Qin, Zheng-hong, Xie, Yan
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Sprache:eng
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Zusammenfassung:Aim: To investigate the antitumor actions of the Crotalus durissus neurotoxin (crotoxin) on human esophageal carcinoma (Eca-109) cells in vitro and transplanted esophageal Eca-109 tumors in nude mice. Methods: The growth-inhibitory effect was analyzed in Eca-109 cells using Ml-r assay. Cell morphology changes in nuclei were observed using Hoechst 33342 staining, while apoptosis and cell cycle distribution were examined by flow cytometry. RT-PCR was used to measure the Bcl-2, p15, and caspase-3 p17 gene expression levels. A tumor transplantation model was established by inocu- lation of Eca-109 cells were into female Balb/c nude mice. Crotoxin (25, 50, and 100 mg/kg) was subcutaneously injected into the transplanted tumors every 2 d for a total of 10 injections. Tumor size and weight were measured. Bcl-2, p15, and caspase-3 p17 pro- tein expression in transplanted tumors was analyzed using Western blotting. Results.Crotoxin (25, 50, and 100 pg/mL) inhibited the growth of Eca-109 cells in a dose-dependent manner with inhibition rates of 22.9%, 35.8%, and 57.2%, respectively. Hoechst 33342 staining revealed apoptotic cells with pyknotic nuclear chromatin after crotoxin treatment. In Eca-109 cells, crotoxin induced apoptosis and G1 block, significantly upregulated the expression of p15 and caspase-3 p17 genes and downregulated the expression of Bcl-2 gene. Furthermore, crotoxin inhibited the growth of Eca-109 tumors in nude mice in a dose-dependent manner. Western blotting showed that crotoxin increased p15 and caspase-3 p17 protein levels and reduced Bcl-2 protein level in tumor specimens. Conclusion: Crotoxin inhibits the growth of Eca-109 cells in vitro via apoptosis induction and G1 block. Local administration of crotoxin inhibits the growth of subcutaneously transplanted Eca-109 cells in nude mice, possibly via increasing p15 and caspase-3 p17 protein expression and reducing Bcl-2 protein expression.
ISSN:1671-4083
1745-7254
DOI:10.1038/aps.2012.156