The action mechanism of herb drugs on the cytotoxicity and apoptosis in tumors undoubtedly are diverse. Apoptosis often is particularly prominent near foci of confluent necrosis, where mild ischemia is likely to be involved in its initiation. Apoptosis in tumors found in living body is occured by cytokines released from macrophage or cytotoxic T-lymphocyte, but the mechanism is not known accurately.
A variety of cancer chemotherapeutic agents have been shown to induce extensive apoptosis in rapidely proliferating normal cell population, lymphoid tissues and tumors. The way in which anti-cancer drugs induce apoptosis is unknown. However, there is an additional important consequence of the realization that anti-cancer drugs mediate their therapeutic affects by triggering apoptosis.
The activated macrophage can selectively destroy tumor cells Therefore, macrophage-mediated tumor cytotoxicity can have a important significance. Recently, it has been reported that some crude drugs stimulates IFN-v production in T-lymphocyte, and IFN-v stimulate nitric oxide production in peritoneal macrophage. The nitric oxide can affect the cytotoxicity and apoptosis in tumor cells.
In this study, antineoplastic activity against human hepatocellular carcinoma cell line(Hep G2) was tested in four species of herb drugs. The plant materials were extracted with water, and the cytotoxic activity was tested using a calorimetric tetrazolium assay(MTT assay), the apoptosis was tested using a DNA electrophoresis and flow cytometry.
The nitric oxide production from mouse peritoneal macrophage was tested using a Griess method.
The four species of herb drugs were Arisaemitis Tuber, Bupleuri Radix and Coptidis Rhizoma extracts against the proliferation of Hep G2 cells showed cytotoxicity at the concentration of less than 100ug/㎖, and Bupleuri Radix and Coptidis Rhizoma extracts increased the cytotoxicity of mitomycin C and Coptidis Rhizoma extracts increased the cytotoxicity of cisplatin on Hep G2 cells.
Bupleuri Radix and Coptidis Rhizoma extracts against the proliperation of BALB/c 3T3 cells showed cytotoxicity, and Coptidis Rhizoma extracts aginist the proliperation of mouse thymocytes showed cytotoxicity at the concentration of less than 100ug/㎖.
Arisaemitis Tuber extracts increased nitric oxide production from macrophage.
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