Solasonine-induced Apoptosis in Lung Cancer Cell Line H446 and Its Mechanism

Abstract

Background and objective Incidence and mortality rates of lung cancer are rising sharply. Small cell lung cancer patients prefer chemotherapy than surgery because of the insignificant side effects of Chinese medicine. Studies have shown that solasonine possesses an anti-tumor property. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of solasonine on the apoptosis of lung cancer cell line H446. Methods Appropriate concentration and time were selected with a CCK8 kit. The drug that was used in H446 cells was divided into four different concentrations: 0 μmol/L, 3.4 μmol/L, 6.8 μmol/L and 13.6 μmol/L. The changes in forms and nucleus of H446 cells that were stained with DAPI were observed under an inverted optical microscope. The effects on H446 cell apoptosis were detected by FCM. The changes in apoptosis-related proteins BCL2, BAX, and CASP3 were investigated using Western blot for 24 h. Results Solasonine reduced the survival ratio of H446 cells and inhibited the proliferation with a dose-related effect. The survival ratio of H446 cells could be reduced to 16.77% (P<0.001), and the highest apoptosis ratio was 44.62% (P<0.001). Apoptosis was observed in H446 cells. Moreover, Western blot showed that the apoptosis-related proteins BAX and CASP3 were upregulated (P<0.05). Conclusion The proliferation of H446 cells can be inhibited by solasonine, and the expression of pro-apoptotic proteins is up-regulated, and the expression of anti-apoptotic proteins is down-regulated, thereby promoting the apoptosis of cells.

Keywords

• Solasonine
• Apoptosis
• Lung cancer cell line H446