Xu Y, Zhu F, Xu S, Liu L. Anti-tumor effect of the extract from qingyihuaji formula on pancreatic cancer by down-regulating Notch-4 and Jagged-1.
J TRADIT CHIN MED 2015;
35:77-83. [PMID:
25842732 DOI:
10.1016/s0254-6272(15)30012-1]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE
To investigate, in terms of Notch signaling pathway, the effect on pancreatic cancer of the extract of an anti-tumor prescription--Qingyi-huaji formula (QYHJ)--from Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).
METHODS
Nude mice were implanted subcutaneously with human pancreatic cancer cell line SW1990 and then randomly divided into four groups: Control, QYHJ extract, Gemcitabine, and Combination of QYHJ extract and gemcitabine. Treatments were given for 21 days and tumor growth was evaluated simultaneously. Then, expression of Notch receptors (Notch-1, Notch-2, Notch-3, and Notch-4) and their Jagged ligands (Jagged-1 and Jagged-2) in dissected tumor tissue were detected by real-time quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and Western blot. Finally, immunohistochemistry was performed to detect CD133, a marker of pancreatic cancer stem cells (CSCs), to evaluate the impact of QYHJ extract on pancreatic CSCs.
RESULTS
QYHJ extract treatment effectively inhibited the tumor growth in nude mice. The expression of both Notch-4 and Jagged-1 were decreased significantly in QYHJ treatment groups (P < 0.05), while gemcitabine alone had no significant effect in down-regulating Jagged-1 (P > 0.05). No significant difference was observed in the ex- pression of Notch-1, Notch-2, Notch-3, and Jagged-2 between three treatment groups and control group (P > 0.05). Moreover, immunohistochemical analysis showed that the number of CD133 positive cells was significantly reduced by QYHJ treatment (P < 0.05), and the combined treatment was more effective than gemcitabine alone (P < 0.05).
CONCLUSION
The role of the extract in pancreatic cancer treatment was associated with down-regulation of Notch-4 and Jagged-1 in Notch signaling pathway. The extract could enhance the antitumor activity of gemcitabine and was more effective than gemcitabine in regulating Notch signaling pathway to some extent.
Collapse