title: Emodin affects ERCC1 expression in breast cancer cells.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Multi-drug resistance to chemotherapeutic agents is a major cause of treatment failure in breast cancer. In this study, we investigated the effects of emodin on reversing the multi-drug resistance, examined the ERCC1 protein expression in breast cancer cell line, and explored the relationship between reversal of multi-drug resistance and ERCC1 protein expression.
  
  
  METHODS
  MTT assay was conducted to test the cytotoxicity of adriamycin and cisplatin to MCF-7/Adr cells with and without emodin pretreatment, and Western blot was performed to examine the ERCC1 protein expression.
  
  
  RESULTS
  MCF-7/Adr cells had 21-fold and 11-fold baseline resistances to adriamycin and cisplatin, respectively. When emodin was added to the cell culture at the concentration of 10 μg/ml, the drug resistance was reduced from 21 folds to 2.86 folds for adriamycin, and from 11 folds to 1.79 folds for cisplatin. MCF-7/Adr cells treated with two concentrations (10 μg/mL and 20 μg/mL) of emodin, after 2, 4, 6, 10 days, the trend of ERCC1 expression was gradually decreased and the reduction was more obvious comparatively at the concentration of 20 μg/mL.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Emodin could reverse the multi-drug resistance in MCF-7/Adr cells and down-regulate ERCC1 protein expression.
authors.affiliation: Department of Breast Disease, Shenzhen Maternity and Child Healthcare Hospital, Southern Medical University, Shenzhen, China. jmfu2000@yahoo.com.cn.
authors.forename: Jian-min
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.forename: Jian-sheng
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Adrian Y S
authors.initials: AY
authors.lastname: Yip
authors.forename: Wings T Y
authors.initials: WT
authors.lastname: Loo
authors.forename: Louis W C
authors.initials: LW
authors.lastname: Chow
authors.forename: Elizabeth L Y
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Ng
mesh_terms: D015153:Blotting, Western; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D002945:Cisplatin / Q000494:pharmacology; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000494:pharmacology; D004642:Emodin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004720:Endonucleases / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020128:Inhibitory Concentration 50; D061986:MCF-7 Cells
chemical_list: D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D004317:Doxorubicin; C071447:ERCC1 protein, human; D004720:Endonucleases; D004642:Emodin; D002945:Cisplatin