Yu Qing Zhang
Soochow University, P R China
Title: Inhibition of morusin from edible medicinal mulberry to two tumor cells by inducing cell apoptosis and disturbing the cell cycle
Biography
Biography: Yu Qing Zhang
Abstract
Morusin is a prenylated flavonoid that is extracted from the root bark of Morus alba, which has been found to play a role in anti-cancer promotion. Here, we first screened the effects of morusin on 20 kinds of cancer cells. We found that the tumour inhibitory ratio of the high concentration treatment group (20 µg/ml) could reach 84% with a dose effect manner. The average half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 20 kinds of cancer cells was 14.79 µM, of which 80% was less than or equal to 15.36 µM. Second, we investigated the effects of morusin on the proliferation, invasion and apoptosis of MDA-MB-453 breast cancer cells and HCT116 colon cancer cells, and explored its mechanism. Morusin remarkably inhibits the growth of these cells in a time- and dose-dependent manner. The apoptotic results showed that the apoptotic rate of MDA-MB-453 cells treated with a high concentration of morusin was 77.73% (P<0.01). Western blotting displayed that morusin could upregulate the expression of E-cadherin and downregulate the N-cadherin and vimentin in a dose-dependent manner, and thus reverse epithelial-mesenchymal transition. It could also upregulate the expression of Bax and cleaved Caspase-3 and downregulate the expression of Bcl-2 and Caspase-3, indicating that morusin could induce cell apoptosis. The results showed that MDA-MB-453 cells were arrested in the G2 phase, and HCT116 cells were blocked in the S phase when treated with morusin, which could disturb the cell cycle. In summary, morusin could inhibit tumour growth and migration and promote cell apoptosis.