Pectolinarigenin Suppresses the Tumor Growth in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.

Background/aims: Nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) is one of the common human malignant diseases all over the world, and chemotherapy remains the main therapy for NPC. However, the survival and life quality of NPC patients are still very poor. Thus, novel and selective anti-tumor agents are pressingly needed. Our previous study identified pectolinarigenin as a novel effective anti-tumor drug candidate for NPC. In this study, we further investigated its anti-tumor activities and explored the potential molecular mechanism.

Methods: NPC C666-1 cells were cultured and treated by pectolinarigenin. Cell proliferation assay, colony formation assay, Transwell assay and wound healing assay were conducted and cell apoptosis was detected by flow cytometry. Mitochondrial transmembrane potential and ROS were also observed. NPC subcutaneous xenograft mice model was established to evaluate the anti-tumor effect of pectolinarigenin in vivo.

Results: We observed that treatment of pectolinarigenin inhibited cell viability and cell migration of NPC C666-1 cells in concentration- and time-dependent manner. Pectolinarigenin induced cell apoptosis in C666-1 cells detected by flow cytometry analysis, which was associated with the activation of mitochondrial-related apoptosis and the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Pectolinarigenin also activated caspase signaling pathway. The in vivo experiment of subcutaneous xenograft mice model also indicated that the administration of pectolinarigenin could decrease the tumor growth of NPC and no severe toxicity was observed.

Conclusions: Based on our findings, we conclude that pectolinarigenin could suppress the tumor growth of NPC, which verifies it as a new therapeutic agent for treating this devastating disease.