Inhibitory effect of ethanol extract of Forsythia suspensa root on growth of esophageal cancer xenograft in vivo / 肿瘤

ABSTRACT

Objective: To investigate the inhibitory effect of ethanol extract of Forsythia suspensa root (FSEER) on growth of esophageal cancer cells in nude mice. Methods: The inhibitory effect of FSEER on growth of esophageal cancer cell lines including TE-1, TE-13, Yes-2 and Eca-109 was measured by MTT method. The xenograft tumor models of TE-13 cells in nude mice were established and divided into two groups: treatment group [treated with FSEER (50 mg/kg)] and the control group (treated with equal volume of normal saline). Then the growth of xenograft tumors in nude mice was observed and their sizes and weights were measured. The apoptosis of tumor tissues in nude mice was deteced by TUNEL staining analysis. The expressions of Bcl-2 and Bax in tumor tissues were detected by immunohistochemical method. Morphological changes of lung and liver tissues in nude mice were observed by hematoxylin-eosin staining. Results: FSEER had obvious inhibitory effect on the growth of esophageal cancer cells in vitro (P < 0.01). Moreover, the growth of TE-13 cells was inhibited by FSEER in the dose-and timedependent manner (P < 0.01). The average volume and weight of tumor tissues in nude mice of FSEER treatment group were significantly smaller and lower, respectively, as compared with those of the control group (P < 0.05). Comparing to the control group, the number of apoptotic cells in FSEER treatment group was significantly increased (P < 0.05), while the expression level of Bcl-2 was decreased (P < 0.05), but Bax expression level was increased (P < 0.05). No obvious morphological changes were found in liver and lung tissues in FSEER treatment group and the control group. Conclusion: FSEER has inhibitory effect on the growth of xenograft tumor of esophageal cancer cells in nude mice, which may be related to inducing apoptosis.