Juglone, from Juglans mandshruica Maxim, inhibits growth and induces apoptosis in human leukemia cell HL-60 through a reactive oxygen species-dependent mechanism.

Juglone, a major chemical constituent of Juglans mandshruica Maxim, is a promising anticancer agent that has shown a strong activity against cancer cells in vitro. Our previous study showed that juglone inhibited the proliferation of HL-60 cells with an IC50 value ∼8 μM. To further explore the proapoptotic mechanism of juglone, we investigated the role of the reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the apoptosis induced by juglone in HL-60 cells.

Anti-proliferative effect of Juglone from Juglans mandshurica Maxim on human leukemia cell HL-60 by inducing apoptosis through the mitochondria-dependent pathway.

Induction of apoptosis in tumor cells has become the major focus of anti-tumor therapeutics development. Juglone, a major chemical constituent of Juglans mandshurica Maxim, possesses several bioactivities including anti-tumor. Here, for the first time, we studied the molecular mechanism of Juglone-induced apoptosis in human leukemia HL-60 cells.