Suppression of colorectal cancer cell growth by combined treatment of 6-gingerol and γ-tocotrienol via alteration of multiple signalling pathways

Ginger Root Bioactive Compounds Specifically Inhibits Growth of Colon Cancer Cells in Culture

Objective

Colon cancer is affluent among many people, and having cancer greatly impacts the lives of many. Ginger is a common food, particularly in Asian cuisine. However, the health benefits of ginger as a whole food and 6-gingerol, its bioactive compound in prevention of colon cancer have not been fully addressed. This experiment investigated effects of ginger juice and 6-gingerol on colon cancer cell growth and death.

Methods

Fresh ginger roots were homogenized for juice preparation. Total phenolic contents of ginger juice were measured using Folin-C assay. Colon cancer SW480 cells and normal colon epithelial cells CCD-18Co were treated with ginger juice and/or 6-gingerol. Cell metabolic activity was assessed by MTT assay. Cell apoptosis and cell cycle arrest were accessed by immunoblotting. Data were analyzed by 2-way ANOVA with a Tukey post-hoc test and statistical significance was set at P < .05.

Results

The results showed that ginger juice selectively inhibited SW480 cell growth at 25 µL/mL for 40 hours. High doses of ginger juice (at 50 and 100 µL/mL for 40 hours) inhibited the growth of both cell types. This was independent of caspase-3 activation. Six-gingerol specifically inhibited SW480 cell growth starting at 0.5 µmoL/L (P < .01). More than 1 µmoL/L 6-gingerol did not give more power to inhibit SW480 cell growth. The results also showed that CCD-18Co cell growth rates were not changed after 6-gingerol treatments (up to 10 µmoL/L, P > .1). Immunoblotting results revealed that the elevation of Myt1 levels and decreases in CDK1, p21 Wafl/Cip1 and pSer642-Wee1 only occurred in SW480 but not CCD-18Co cells when treated with 1 and/or 2.5 µmoL/L 6-gingerol for 40 hours.

Conclusion

6-gingerol can specifically inhibit SW480 cancer cells without killing normal CCd-18Co cells, through cell cycle arrest. Ginger juice can selectively inhibit colon cancer cell growth in a narrow window at ~25 µL/mL.

Research progress of ginger in the treatment of gastrointestinal tumors

Cancer seriously endangers human health. Gastrointestinal cancer is the most common and major malignant tumor, and its morbidity and mortality are gradually increasing. Although there are effective treatments such as radiotherapy and chemotherapy for gastrointestinal tumors, they are often accompanied by serious side effects. According to the traditional Chinese medicine and food homology theory, many materials are both food and medicine. Moreover, food is just as capable of preventing and treating diseases as medicine. Medicine and food homologous herbs not only have excellent pharmacological effects and activities but also have few side effects. As a typical medicinal herb with both medicinal and edible uses, some components of ginger have been shown to have good efficacy and safety against cancer. A mass of evidence has also shown that ginger has anti-tumor effects on digestive tract cancers (such as gastric cancer, colorectal cancer, liver cancer, laryngeal cancer, and pancreatic cancer) through a variety of pathways. The aim of this study is to investigate the mechanisms of action of the main components of ginger and their potential clinical applications in treating gastrointestinal tumors.

Metabonomic profiling of clubroot-susceptible and clubroot-resistant radish and the assessment of disease-resistant metabolites

Plasmodiophora brassicae causes a serious threat to cruciferous plants including radish (Raphanus sativus L.). Knowledge on the pathogenic regularity and molecular mechanism of P. brassicae and radish is limited, especially on the metabolism level. In the present study, clubroot-susceptible and clubroot-resistant cultivars were inoculated with P. brassicae Race 4, root hairs initial infection of resting spores (10⁷ CFU/mL) at 24 h post-inoculation and root galls symptom arising at cortex splitting stage were identified on both cultivars. Root samples of cortex splitting stage of two cultivars were collected and used for untargeted metabonomic analysis. We demonstrated changes in metabolite regulation and pathways during the cortex splitting stage of diseased roots between clubroot-susceptible and clubroot-resistant cultivars using untargeted metabonomic analysis. We identified a larger number of differentially regulated metabolites and heavier metabolite profile changes in the susceptible cultivar than in the resistant counterpart. The metabolites that were differentially regulated in both cultivars were mostly lipids and lipid-like molecules. Significantly regulated metabolites and pathways according to the P value and variable important in projection score were identified. Moreover, four compounds, including ethyl α-D-thioglucopyranoside, imipenem, ginsenoside Rg1, and 6-gingerol, were selected, and their anti-P. brassicae ability and effects on seedling growth were verified on the susceptible cultivar. Except for ethyl α-D-thioglucopyranoside, the remaining could inhibit clubroot development of varing degree. The use of 5 mg/L ginsenoside Rg1 + 5 mg/L 6-gingerol resulted in the lowest disease incidence and disease index among all treatments and enhanced seedling growth. The regulation of pathways or metabolites of carbapenem and ginsenoside was further explored. The results provide a preliminary understanding of the interaction between radish and P. brassicae at the metabolism level, as well as the development of measures for preventing clubroot.

Phytochemicals in cancer and their effect on the PI3K/AKT-mediated cellular signalling

Protein kinases belong to the largest family of enzymes controlling every aspect of cellular activity including gene expression, cell division, differentiation and metabolism. They are part of major intracellular signalling pathways. Hence, it is not surprising that they are involved in the development of major diseases such as cardiovascular disorders, diabetes, dementia and, most importantly, cancer when they undergo mutations, modifications and unbalanced expression. This review will explore the possibility to draw a connection between the application of natural phytochemicals and the treatment of cancer. We have chosen to focus on the PI3K/AKT cellular signalling pathway which has been shown to be a major target by natural compounds in cell cultures and animal models.

Radioiodinated Ginger Compounds (6-gingerol and 6-shogaol) and Incorporation Assays on Breast Cancer Cells

BACKGROUND

6-Gingerol (6G) and 6-Shogaol (6S) are the main active components of ginger. 6-Gingerol is known for its anti-metastatic and anti-invasive pharmacological activities on cancer cells, besides, 6-Shogaol also inhibits breast cancer cell invasion.

OBJECTIVE

In this study, radioiodination (131I) of 6G and 6S was aimed. Additionally, it is aimed to monitor their incorporation behavior on breast cancer cell lines.

METHODS

6-Gingerol was isolated from the fresh ginger-roots extract, additionally, dehydrated to obtain 6-Shogaol. 6G and 6S were radioiodinated using iodogen method. Quality control studies of radioiodinated ginger compounds (6G and 6S) were performed by thin layer radio-chromatography. In vitro studies of radioiodinated ginger compounds on MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells were performed with incorporation assays.

RESULTS

6-Gingerol and 6-Shogaol were radioiodinated (131I-6G and 131I-6S) in high yields over 95%. 131I-6S demonstrated higher incorporation values than 131I-6G on MDA-MB-231 cells. Incorporation behavior of 131I-6G and 131I-6S was similar to MCF-7 cells.

CONCLUSION

It has been observed that ginger compounds were radioiodinated successfully and 131I-6S have a noteworthy incorporation on MDA-MB-231 cells which is a known breast carcinoma cell line with highly invasive characteristics.