JA, a new type of polyunsaturated fatty acid isolated from Juglans mandshurica Maxim, limits the survival and induces apoptosis of heptocarcinoma cells.

Juglans mandshurica Maxim (Juglandaceae) is a famous folk medicine for cancer treatment and some natural compounds isolated from it have been studied extensively. Previously we isolated a type of ω-9 polyunsaturated fatty acid (JA) from the bark of J. mandshurica, however little is known about its activity and the underlying mechanisms. In this study, we studied anti-tumor activity of JA on several human cancer cell lines. Results showed that JA is cytotoxic to HepG2, MDA-MB-231, SGC-7901, A549 and Huh7 cells at a concentration exerting minimal toxic effects on L02 cells. The selective toxicity of JA was better than other classical anti-cancer drugs. Further investigation indicated that JA could induce cell apoptosis, characterized by chromatin condensation, DNA fragmentation and activation of the apoptosis-associated proteins such as Caspase-3 and PARP-1. Moreover, we investigated the cellular apoptosis pathway involved in the apoptosis process in HepG2 cells. We found that proteins involved in mitochondrion (cleaved-Caspase-9, Apaf-1, HtrA2/Omi, Bax, and Mitochondrial Bax) and endocytoplasmic reticulum (XBP-1s, GRP78, cleaved-Caspase-7 and cleaved-Caspase-12) apoptotic pathways were up-regulated when cells were treated by JA. In addition, a morphological change in the mitochondrion was detected. Furthermore, we found that JA could inhibit DNA synthesis and induce G2/M cell cycle arrest. The expression of G2-to-M transition related proteins, such as CyclinB1 and phosphorylated-CDK1, were reduced. In contrast, the G2-to-M inhibitor p21 was increased in JA-treated cells. Overall, our results suggest that JA can induce mitochondrion- and endocytoplasmic reticulum-mediated apoptosis, and G2/M phase arrest in HepG2 cells, making it a promising therapeutic agent against hepatoma.

[Dry matter storage and water soluble sugar content in different age classes rhizomes of Phragmites communis population in dry land habitat of Songnen Plain of China].

Based on the investigation and measurement of Phragmites communis in a single dominant species community in dry land habitat of Songnen Plain, the seasonal variation of dry matter storage and water soluble sugar content in different age classes rhizomes at three growth stages were analyzed. The results showed that at all growth stages, younger age class rhizomes had lower dry matter storage and water soluble sugar content, and there was an obvious difference between younger and older age classes. The dry matter storage and water soluble sugar content in younger age class rhizomes increased rapidly with growth season, and the difference between younger and older age classes reduced gradually. In the whole growth season, all the rhizomes of six age classes kept up the activities in nutrient consumption, re-storage and even overcompensating storage, and the activities of younger age class rhizomes were much higher. The dry matter storage and water soluble sugar content in older age class rhizomes increased with year. There existed extremely significant differences (P < 0.01) in the dry matter storage within and among different age class rhizomes, and the difference was larger within age classes than among age classes. Significant differences (P < 0.05) in water soluble sugar content were also observed among different age class rhizomes. The dry matter storage and water soluble sugar content in P. communis rhizomes increased in quadratic with increasing age class.