Structural Characterization of Polysaccharides from Dendrobium officinale and Their Effects on Apoptosis of HeLa Cell Line

Abstract

Dendrobium officinale is a widely used medicinal plant in China with numerous bio-activities. However, the main structure and anti-tumor activity of the polysaccharides from this plant have not been investigated. In this study, we elucidated the main structure of polysaccharides purified with DEAE and Sephadex G-25 from Dendrobium officinale grown under different planting conditions. In addition, the anti-tumor activity was tested via MTT assays. The results showed that the polysaccharides of Dendrobium officinale grown under different conditions were almost the same, with slight differences in the branched chain; both polysaccharide fractions consisted of (1→4)-linked mannose and (1→4)-linked glucose, with an O-acetyl group in the mannose. After degradation, the polysaccharide fractions from wild plants showed significant anti-proliferation activity in HeLa cells. The fractions F1 and F3 induced apoptosis by up-regulating the expression of ERK, JNK, and p38. We concluded that polysaccharides from Dendrobium officinale planted in the wild exhibit significant anti-tumor effects only after being degraded to smaller molecular weight species. The planting mode is a significant factor in the pharmacological activity of Dendrobium officinale. We advise that the planting conditions for Dendrobium officinale should be changed.

Physicochemical and Antioxidant Properties of the Degradations of Polysaccharides from Dendrobium officinale and Their Suitable Molecular Weight Range on Inducing HeLa Cell Apoptosis

“…e protein in the polysaccharides was removed using the Sevage method [20] three to five times until no white floccules were evident at the border between the water and chloroform to obtain DOP. e degradation of DOP with different molecular weights was evaluated by the method our group used for the long term [18] but with slight differences. 3.6 g of DOP was dissolved in 314.7 mL of distilled water in an ultrasonic bath.…”

“…Zhao et al degraded polysaccharides from Porphyra haitanensis using the H 2 O 2 system to obtain fragments of different molecular weights and proved that the antioxidant activity of them was closely related to the molecular weight [16]. However, in terms of DOPs, some studies applied polysaccharides by fractional precipitation or the total polysaccharides to investigate the antitumor activity [17,18], and fewer reports have published concerning polysaccharides that degraded into a series of molecular weights but lacking comparison of molecular weights [18].…”

Structure Identification of ViceninII Extracted from Dendrobium officinale and the Reversal of TGF-β1-Induced Epithelial–Mesenchymal Transition in Lung Adenocarcinoma Cells through TGF-β/Smad and PI3K/Akt/mTOR Signaling Pathways

“…According to Chinese medicine theory, (Bulpitt, 2007 #502; Yu, 2018 #503) D. officinale clears heat and nourishes the lung, thereby treating lung-related diseases and improving the overall life quality of patients with lung cancer [29]. In modern pharmacological studies, (Bulpitt, 2007 #502; Yu, 2018 #503) D. officinale has displayed significant bio-active functions, including immunomodulatory [30,31], antioxidant [32,33], anti-inflammatory [34], antitumor [35,36] and hepatoprotective functions [37]. To date, most of the research in this area has been focused on polysaccharides and extracts from (Bulpitt, 2007 #502; Yu, 2018 #503) D. officinale , but flavonoids are a widespread group of significant substances with various biological pharmacological functions [38].…”

Antitumoral Properties of Natural Products

“…The structure-activity relationship study, including also quercetin for comparison, demonstrated that the presence of a methoxyl group in C6 of the A ring of flavonol patuletin enhanced its anticancer potential [28]. Yu et al have purified polysaccharides from the stem extract of the medicinal plant Dendrobium officinale grown under different planting conditions (in the greenhouse and in the wild) and compared their structure and antitumor properties on HeLa cells [29]. Polysaccharides showed a significant activity only after oxidative degradation to smaller molecular weight species.…”

“…Polysaccharides showed a significant activity only after oxidative degradation to smaller molecular weight species. The fractions from wild plants showed an evident antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic activities while the effects of the fractions from greenhouse plants were not significant [29]. Nguyen et al have biotransformed three selected anthraquinones into their O-glucoside by a bacteria glycosyltransferase, and tested these products for their antiproliferative affects against various cancer cells (AGS: gastric; HeLa: cervical; Hep-G2: liver) [30].…”