Effects of astragali radix on the growth of different cancer cell lines.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the inhibitory effect of a Chinese herb medicine Astragali radix (AR) on growth of different cancer cell line.


METHODS
To observe the in vitro effects of AR on tumor cell proliferation by trypan blue exclusion, MTS method and tritium thymidine incorporation assay. Apoptosis was detected by DNA ladder method.


RESULTS
The inhibition rates of AR on the cell respiration of AGS, KATOIII, HT29, MDA231, MEL7 and MEL14 were 68.25 %, 62.36 %, 22.8 %, 27.69 %, 2.85 % and 5.14 % respectively at the concentration of 100 ug/ml; it inhibited AGS DNA synthesis by 87.33 % at the concentration of 50 ug/ml. The inhibitory effect on AGS was time-and dose-dependent. AR did not induce apoptosis in AGS cells.


CONCLUSIONS
AR specifically inhibits gastric cancer cells growth in vitro and the mechanism is mainly cytostatic but not cytotoxic or inducing apoptosis.
Lin
Jiang
J
Deportment of Gastroenterology, Shuguang Hospital, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 200021, China. lin_jiang@hotmail.com
Dong
Hui-Fang
HF
Oppenheim
J J
JJ
Howard
O M
OM
D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000473:pathology; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology; D018279:Carcinoma, Signet Ring Cell / Q000473:pathology; D002455:Cell Division / Q000187:drug effects*; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects*; D003110:Colonic Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000633:toxicity*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008517:Phytotherapy; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured
D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal