Effects of taspine on proliferation and apoptosis by regulating caspase‐3 expression and the ratio of Bax/Bcl‐2 in A431 cells

Abstract

Taspine is an active component isolated from Radix et Rhizoma Leonticis. It has been shown that taspine can inhibit tumour angiogenesis. However, how it inhibits the proliferation of, and induces apoptosis in, A431 cells is unknown. The study investigated the effects of taspine on the proliferation and apoptosis in the A431 cell line using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT), flow cytometry, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), western blotting (WB) and real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Changes in microstructure, cell cycle and protein expressions of caspase-3, cleaved caspase-3, cyclindependent kinase 2 (CDK2), cyclin-dependent kinase 4 (CDK4), Bcl-2 and Bax were observed after treatment of A431 cells with taspine. Taspine could inhibit the growth of, and induce apoptosis in, A431 cells in a dose-dependent manner. The cell cycle was significantly stopped at S phase. Nuclear karyopyknosis, chromatin agglutination and typical apoptotic bodies were found in A431 cells. There was a decrease in the expression of Bcl-2, whereas the expression of caspase-3, cleaved caspase-3, CDK2, CDK4 and Bax increased. These data demonstrated that taspine can inhibit the proliferation of, and induce apoptosis in, A431 cells by activating caspase-3 expression and up-regulating the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2 in A431 cells.

Harmine Hydrochloride Triggers G2 Phase Arrest and Apoptosis in MGC-803 Cells and SMMC-7721 Cells by Upregulating p21, Activating Caspase-8/Bid, and Downregulating ERK/Bad Pathway

“…The Bcl-2 family plays an important role in the regulation of cell apoptosis (Kang and Reynolds, 2009;Zhou et al, 2011). When levels of anti-apoptotic proteins on the mitochondrial membrane, such as Bcl-2, Bcl-xL, and Mcl-1 decrease and levels of pro-apoptotic proteins increase or remain unchanged, the ratio of Bcl-2/Bax, Bcl-xL/Bax, and Mcl-1/Bax decreases, leading to a relative increase in Bax (Zhang et al, 2011). Bax proteins change their configuration to form oligomers and insert into mitochondrial membrane as pores (Tait and Green, 2010), which leads to the release of cytochrome c from mitochondria and the initiation of the caspase pathway of apoptosis (Fan et al, 2007;Adams and Cory, 2007).…”

Genus Caulophyllum: An Overview of Chemistry and Bioactivity

“…Taspine has an inhibitory effect on growth of HUVECs and can induce its apoptosis by decreasing Bcl-2 expression and increasing bax expression. Zhang et al continuously investigated the effects of taspine on the proliferation and apoptosis in the A431 cell [60]. The cell cycle was significantly stopped at S phase, and nuclear karyopyknosis, chromatin agglutination, and typical apoptotic bodies were found after taspine treatment in A431 cells.…”

Protective Effect of CpG-Oligodeoxynucleotides Against Low- and High-LET Irradiation

“…The caspase family is responsible for the execution phase of apoptosis [30], and caspase-3 plays a central role in this process. Once activated, caspase-3 rapidly induces the cleavage of poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) and forms cleaved caspase-3, which in turn leads to the degradation of DNA into nucleosomal fragments [31]. Our results showed that CpG-ODN treatment led to a low level of caspase-3 expression and the disappearance of cleaved caspase-3 after irradiation, suggesting that caspase-3 activation was inhibited.…”