title: Asiatic acid, a triterpene, inhibits cell proliferation through regulating the expression of focal adhesion kinase in multiple myeloma cells.
abstract: The aim of the present study was to investigate whether asiatic acid (AA), a pentacyclic triterpene derived fromCentella asiatica, exerts anti-proliferative effects on multiple myeloma RPMI 8226 cells and to determine the molecular mechanism underlying the anticancer action of AA. The study sought to analyze the potential role of AA on the proliferation of the RPMI 8226 cells using a 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium assay. Cell cycle arrest was detected by flow cytometry, and the expression levels of focal adhesion kinase (FAK) in the myeloma cells induced by AA were analyzed using the western blotting and immunoprecipitation methods. The results indicated that AA significantly inhibited cell proliferation in a time- and dose-dependent manner and led to G2/M phase arrest at concentrations of 35 and 40 μmol/l in the RPMI 8226 cells. The expression levels of FAK and p-FAK were distinctly decreased following AA treatment (at the concentration of 40 μmol/l) for 24 h compared with that of the control groups. Taken together, these results demonstrated that AA was able to regulate cell cycle progression in RPMI 8226 cells, thereby significantly inhibiting cell growth. Furthermore, AA decreased the expression levels of FAK, indicating that the antitumor mechanism of AA may be associated with the inhibition of signal transduction mediated by FAK.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Hematology, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430022, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Junli
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Lisha
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ai
authors.forename: Tingting
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Lv
authors.forename: Xudong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Fang
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Liu
keywords: asiatic acid; cell cycle arrest; focal adhesion kinase; multiple myeloma; proliferation inhibition