ABSTRACT
AIM:To establish an effective method for purification and culture of human cumulus cells(CCs) in vitro,and to compare the characteristics between CCs and mural granulosa cells(MGCs).METHODS:Follicular fluid and cumulus complex from the patients undergoing intracytoplasmic sperm injection were collected.CCs were mechanically cut from cumulus complex and then directly inoculated on a Petri dish, and MGCs were obtained from follicular fluid through density gradient centrifugation.The expression of follicle stimulating hormone receptor(FSHR)was determined by immunofluorescence.The cell growth curves were measured by CCK-8 assay.The secretion of estrogen was detected by ELISA.RESULTS:After incubated for 24 h, the adherence of CCs was observed.CCs and MGCs had similar growth characteristics and FSHR expression.The similar cell growth curves were observed by CCK-8 assay and the results of ELISA showed that they had comparable secretion of estrogen.CONCLUSION:Direct culture of CCs mechanically cutting from cumulus complex is an effective method.CCs had similar growth characteristics,growth curves and secretion of estro-gen to MGCs cultured in vitro and could be a substitutive source of granulosa cell subsets.
ABSTRACT
In this study, one immortalized human normal prostatic epithelial cell line (BPH) and four human prostate cancer cell lines (LNCaP, 22Rv1, PC-3, and DU-145) were treated with Ganoderma Lucidum triterpenoids (GLT) at different doses and for different time periods. Cell viability, apoptosis, and cell cycle were analyzed using flow cytometry and chemical assays. Gene expression and binding to DNA were assessed using real-time PCR and Western blotting. It was found that GLT dose-dependently inhibited prostate cancer cell growth through induction of apoptosis and cell cycle arrest at G1 phase. GLT-induced apoptosis was due to activation of Caspases-9 and -3 and turning on the downstream apoptotic events. GLT-induced cell cycle arrest (mainly G1 arrest) was due to up-regulation of p21 expression at the early time and down-regulation of cyclin-dependent kinase 4 (CDK4) and E2F1 expression at the late time. These findings demonstrate that GLT suppresses prostate cancer cell growth by inducing growth arrest and apoptosis, which might suggest that GLT or Ganoderma Lucidum could be used as a potential therapeutic drug for prostate cancer.