ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the inhibitory effect and mechanism of temozolomide on migration and invasion of U251 human glioma cells enhanced by plumbagin. Methods CCK-8 method was used to study the effects of plumbagin, temozolomide and plumbagin+temozolomide on the proliferation of glioma U251 cells. Cell scratch test was used to detect the migration of U251 cells in the control (DMSO), plumbagin, temozolomide and plumbagin+temozolomide groups for 48h. Transwell assay was used to detect the effect of the combination therapy on the invasion of U251 cells. Western blot was used to detect the relative expression levels of E-cadherin in three groups. Results CCK-8 showed that the proliferation inhibition rate of U251 cells treated with plumbagin (1.25 μmol/L) combined with temozolomide (200 μmol/L) for 48h was 75.69%, significantly higher than that treated with plumbagin alone (P=0.012) or temozolomide alone (P=0.034). Cell scratch assay showed that the combination of plumbagin and temozolomide could significantly enhance the inhibition effect of temozolomide on the migration of U251 cells (P=0.023). Transwell assay showed that the invasion ability of U251 cells was significantly decreased after the combination therapy (P < 0.05). The protein expression of E-cadherin in the combination group was significantly higher than those in plumbagin or temozolomide groups (P < 0.05). Conclusion Plumbagin combined with temozolomide can inhibit the migration and invasion of glioma cells and enhance the sensitivity of glioma cells to temozolomide. And the effect is achieved by the protein expression of E-cadherin.