ABSTRACT
Objective: To investigate the effects of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor celecoxib on the proliferation and apoptosis of acute myeloid leukemia cells. Methods: After acute monocytic leukemia cell line THP-1 treatment with different concentrations of celecoxib, the proliferation, apoptosis and cell cycle distribution of THP-1 cells were detected by MTS and FCM, respectively. The expressions of cleaved-caspase-3, cleaved poly ADP-ribose polymerase-1 (cleaved-PARP-1), inhibitor of nuclear factor kappa-B kinase β (IKKβ), phospho- IKKβ (p-IKKβ), seride-threonine protein kinase (Akt), phospho-Akt (p-Akt) and survivin proteins in THP-1 cells were detected after treatment with different concentrations of celecoxib. Results: Different concentrations of celecoxib inhibited the proliferation of THP-1 cells, induced the apoptosis of THP-1 cells, and arrested the cell cycles of THP-1 cells at G0/G1 phase (all P 6 μmol/L) were significantly upregulated (all P < 0.05). Conclusion: Celecoxib can inhibit the proliferation and induce the apoptosis of THP-1.This effect may be related to Akt/nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) signaling pathway and the expression of anti-apoptotic protein survivin.