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Berberine is a well‑known component of the Chinese herbal medicine Huanglian (Coptis chinensis), and is capable of inhibiting the proliferation of multiple cancer cell lines. However, information available regarding the effect of berberine on prostate cancer cell growth is limited. In the present study, LnCaP and PC‑3 human prostate cancer cell lines were selected as in vitro models in order to assess the efficacy of berberine as an anticancer agent. A cell proliferation assay demonstrated that berberine inhibited cell growth in a dose‑and time‑dependent manner. Further investigation revealed berberine significantly accumulated inside cells that were in the G1 phase of the cell cycle and enhanced apoptosis. Western blot analysis demonstrated that berberine inhibited the expression of prostate‑specific antigen and the activation of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), and it attenuated EGFR activation following EGF treatment in vitro. In conclusion, the results indicate that berberine inhibits the proliferation of prostate cancer cells through apoptosis and/or cell cycle arrest by inactivation of the EGFR signaling pathway.

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to explain the connotation of grey number, which is the basic unit of grey mathematics and the key to establish the mathematic framework of grey system theory. Design/methodology/approach -From the grey hazy set, the paper re-defines grey number and the operation of grey-number element, then some properties are obtained. Based on them, the operation of grey-matrix element is given. The general definition of grey function and its operation are also proposed. Findings -The connotation of grey number is elaborated and the elementary framework of grey mathematics can be established.Research limitations/implications -The researched object, objective and techniques of grey system theory have not been logically proposed and they may influence the comprehension of grey system theory. The obtained results of grey mathematics may significantly promote its development. Practical implications -The paper can enable managers to control the complex system with missing information by using the quantitative approaches. Originality/value -Grey mathematics may become a branch of mathematics to deal with proximate calculation.

Purpose – This paper attempts to establish the general formula for computing the inverse of grey matrix, and the results are applied to solve grey linear programming. The inverse of a grey matrix and grey linear programming plays an important role in establishing a grey computational system. Design/methodology/approach – Starting from the fact that missing information often appears in complex systems, and therefore that true values of elements are uncertain when the authors construct a matrix, as well as calculate its inverse. However, the authors can get their ranges, which are called the number-covered sets, by using grey computational rules. How to get the matrix-covered set of inverse grey matrix became a typical approach. In this paper, grey linear programming was explained in detail, for the point of grey meaning and the methodology to calculate the inverse grey matrix can successfully solve grey linear programming. Findings – The results show that the ranges of grey value of inverse grey matrix and grey linear programming can be obtained by using the computational rules. Practical implications – Because the matrix and the linear programming have been widely used in many fields such as system controlling, economic analysis and social management, and the missing information is a general phenomenon for complex systems, grey matrix and grey linear programming may have great potential application in real world. The methodology realizes the feasibility to control the complex system under uncertain situations. Originality/value – The paper successfully obtained the ranges of uncertain inverse matrix and linear programming by using grey system theory, when the elements of matrix and the coefficients of linear programming are intervals and the results enrich the contents of grey mathematics.