Inhibitory effect of baicalein combined with gemcitabine in human pancreatic cancer cell lines

Li,Zhenlei; Zou,Xiaoping; Zhu,Hao; Chen,Min; Zhao,Yan

doi:10.3892/ol.2018.8043

Inhibitory effect of baicalein combined with gemcitabine in human pancreatic cancer cell lines

Authors:
- Zhenlei Li
- Xiaoping Zou
- Hao Zhu
- Min Chen
- Yan Zhao
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Affiliations: Department of Gastroenterology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital Clinical College of Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210008, P.R. China, Department of Gastroenterology, Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210008, P.R. China
Published online on: February 13, 2018 https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2018.8043
Pages: 5459-5464
Copyright: © Li et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

Pancreatic cancer is an aggressive disease with a particularly poor prognosis contributing to a substantial percentage of cancer‑associated mortality rates. In the present study, the combination treatment of baicalein (BAI) and gemcitabine (GEM) was investigated to examine whether it inhibited the growth of the human CFPAC‑1 pancreatic cancer cell line in vitro and in vivo. The cytotoxic interactions between BAI and GEM in human pancreatic cancer cell lines were determined using MTT assays, and the effect of the two agents on apoptosis was detected using Hoechst 33258 staining and annexin V/7‑AAD. The protein levels of Bcl‑2‑associated X protein (Bax), B‑cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl‑2), caspase‑3, poly ADP ribose polymerase (PARP) and survivin were detected using western blot analysis. Furthermore, the expression levels of Bax, Bcl‑2, caspase‑3 and survivin in tumor tissues were detected using immunohistochemistry. The results demonstrated that following GEM treatment, the growth of CFPAC‑1 cells and xenografts in nude mice were inhibited, and the expression levels of Bcl‑2 and survivin were downregulated, whilst the expression levels of Bax, caspase‑3 and PARP were upregulated. These effects were enhanced with the use of BAI in combination with GEM. The mechanism underlying the anti‑tumor effect of BAI combined with GEM may be associated with the induction of cell apoptosis and the inhibition of proliferation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first evidence of the efficacy of BAI against pancreatic cancer and may provide the potential clinical evidence for the use of this drug combination for the treatment of patients with pancreatic cancer.

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