The Effect And Mechanism Of Berbamine On The Proliferation And Apotosis Of Human Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells

Objective: To study the effect and possible mechanism of berbamine on the proliferation and apotosis of human liver cancer SMMC-7721 cells, which provides theoretical reference for its clinic usage.Methods: After human liver cancer SMMC-7721 cells in vitio were incubated with various-concentration berbamine,the cell proliferation was assessed by MTT assay. The cell morphology was assessed by phase contrast imaging. The cell cycle distribution was detected by PI staining. The expression of cyclin B1, cyclin D1, p21 and p27 mRNA and protein were determined by RT-PCR and western-blot assays. The apoptosis rate was detected by Annexin V/PI and DAPI staining. The change of cytochrome C was assessed by cellular immunofluorescence staining. The expression of Bcl-2, Bax, p53 and survivin mRNA and protein were determined by RT-PCR and western-blot.Results: Compared with the control group,the different concentrations berbamine could obviously inhibit the human liver cancer SMMC-7721 cells proliferation and induced cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase(P<0.05, P<0.01). The RT-PCR and western-blot results showed that berbamine treated SMMC-7721 cells could decrease the expression of cyclin B1 and cyclin D1, and increase the expression of p21 and p27(P<0.05, P<0.01).Moreover, compared with the control group, the different concentrations berbamine could significantly induce the human liver cancer SMMC-7721 cells apoptosis,and caused cytochrome C move from nuclear to cellular plasma. the results of RT-PCR and western-blot showed that berbamine treated SMMC-7721 cell could decrease the expression of bcl-2 and survivin, and increase the expression of p53 and bax on the human liver cancer SMMC-7721 cells in a dosage-dependent manner.Conclusion: Berbamine could effectively inhibit the cell growth and induce cell apoptosis in human hepatocellular carcinoma cells SMMC-7721. On the one hand,berbamine could inhibit the human liver cancer SMMC-7721 cell proliferation and cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase,which might be associated with the down-regulation of cyclin B1 and cyclin D1, and up-regulation of p21 and p27 levels. On the other hand, berbamine could accelerate the human liver cancer SMMC-7721 cell apoptosis, which might be associated with the down-regulation of bcl-2 and survivin, and up-regulation of p53 and bax levels.