Antimigratory Activity of Royal Jelly on HCT-116 Colorectal Cancer Cells

Abstract

Royal jelly (RJ) is a natural product, consumed as a functional food and in the form of a food supplement with multiple biological potentials. Apitherapy presents a complementary medical approach using bee products in the treatment of diseases, including cancer. Cancer metastasis implies the acquisition of migratory potential of cancer cells, and RJ already showed remarkable antimetastatic effects. We aimed to investigate the effects of RJ on the migration of colorectal cancer cells and key proteins involved in this process, E- and N-cadherin. Experiments were done 24 h after treatment with two selected concentrations. RJ suppressed the migratory potential of colorectal cancer cell line HCT-116, and enhanced the expression of anti-migratory protein, E-cadherin, while significantly inhibiting the promigratory marker, N-cadherin.

Keywords

• N-cadherin
• Transwell assay
• apitherapy
• migration
• natural product