RESUMO
Objective: To investigate the mechanism of butyrate,which is the by-products of diet fiber fermented in colon and induce the apoptosis of human colon cancer cell. Methods: The subculture of human colon cancer cell line SW1116 was cultured in medium with different concentration of butyrate(0、2 、3 、4、7 and 10 mmol/L).The mRNA and proteins of bcl-2 or bax in cell lines were detected respectively by RT-PCR and Western Blotting while the concentration of p53 protein and the activity of caspase-3 was detected by flow cytometer and fluorescent quantitative assay respectively after 6、24、48 and 72h cultivation.Results: There was no expression of bcl-2 mRNA and its protein in SW1116 cell during the study periods but the expression of bax mRNA and its protein,the p53 protein concentration and the caspase-3 activity increased gradually when the butyrate concentration was increased and the cultivation time was prolonged. Conclusion: By up-regulating the expression of bax mRNA and its protein,butyrate induce the apoptosis of colon cancer cell on a p53 dependent way.