Growth Inhibition Of Raji Cell And Down-Regulation Of VEGF Expression Induced By Arsenic Trioxide

Objective: To investigate the effects of As₂O₃ on B lymphoma Raji cell.Methods: Modified MTT experiment was adopted to evaluate the effect of arsenic on proliferation of Raji cell. Semi-quantitative RT-PCR was used to detect the expression of VEGF₁₂₁ and VEGF₁₆₅ mRNA in Raji cell treated by As₂O₃.Results: Arsenic significantly inhibit the proliferation of Raji cell, the IC50 value was 3.84±1.41μM. The relationship between the inhibition rate and the concentrations of As₂O₃ showed a dose- and time-dependent effect. Both VEGF₁₂₁ and VEGF₁₆₅ mRNA expression level in Raji cell were significantly reduced after treatment of arsenic at 1μM for 48 hours (p<0.05). But the expression level was not influenced by the dose of arsenic.Conclusion: As₂O₃ could significantly inhibit the growth of human B lymphoma Raji cell and may exert its anti-angiogenesis effect via down-regulation the VEGF mRNA expression, even though the arsenic was given a low concentration for a long term.