[Matrine affects early expression of proto-oncogenes in K562 cells].

Background & Objective: It has been reported that matrine had the anti-tumor activity, and our previous study have provided that matrine had the effects of inhibiting proliferation and inducing differentiation in K562 cell line, but its molecular mechanism is unknown yet.

Method: The expression of several proto-oncogenes(c-myc, c-jun, H-ras, p21, and HNF-1 alpha) in K562 cell line treated by 0.2 mg/ml matrine were measured by RT-PCR.

Result: The c-myc, c-jun, and HNF-1 alpha mRNA of K562 cells treated by 0.2 mg/ml matrine were dramatically decreased at the early stage (3 h), while the H-ras and p21 mRNA were increased obviously at the same time.

Conclusion: The changes of several proto-oncogenes in K562 cells treated by 0.2 mg/ml matrine may be related to inhibiting proliferation and inducing differentiation.