title: Germacrone inhibits the proliferation of glioma cells by promoting apoptosis and inducing cell cycle arrest.
abstract: Germacrone is one of the major bioactive components of the traditional Chinese Medicinal plant Curcuma aromatica Salisb. and has been shown to possess anti‑tumor properties. In the present study, the anti‑proliferative effect of germacrone on human glioma cells and the molecular mechanism underlying its cytotoxicity were investigated. Treatment of the U87 and U251 human glioma cell lines with germacrone inhibited the cell proliferation in a dose‑ and time‑dependent manner as assessed by MTT assay, while significantly lower effects were observed on normal human astrocytes. Flow cytometric analysis and DNA fragmentation revealed that germacrone promoted apoptosis of glioma cells, associated with an increased expression of p53 and bax and decreased expression of bcl‑2. Furthermore, flow cytometric cell cycle analysis revealed that germacrone induced G1 phase arrest, associated with an obvious decrease in the expression of cyclin D1 and CDK2 and an increased expression of p21. In conclusion, the present study suggested that germacrone may be a novel potent chemopreventive drug candidate for gliomas via regulating the expression of proteins associated with apoptosis and G1 cell cycle arrest.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Daqing Oilfield General Hospital, Daqing, Heilongjiang 163411, Daqing, Heilongjiang 163316, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, The Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Daqing, Heilongjiang 163316, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Yue-Qiu
authors.initials: YQ
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Daqing Oilfield General Hospital, Daqing, Heilongjiang 163411, Daqing, Heilongjiang 163316, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Min
authors.initials: XM
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Daqing Oilfield General Hospital, Daqing, Heilongjiang 163411, Daqing, Heilongjiang 163316, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Yu-Chun
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Daqing Oilfield General Hospital, Daqing, Heilongjiang 163411, Daqing, Heilongjiang 163316, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Li-Qi
authors.initials: LQ
authors.lastname: Fu
mesh_terms: D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects*; D030024:Curcuma / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D019938:Cyclin D1 / Q000378:metabolism; D051357:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 2 / Q000378:metabolism; D050759:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p21 / Q000378:metabolism; D053938:DNA Fragmentation / Q000187:drug effects; D059585:G1 Phase Cell Cycle Checkpoints / Q000187:drug effects*; D005910:Glioma / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 / Q000378:metabolism; D045788:Sesquiterpenes, Germacrane / Q000633:toxicity*; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 / Q000378:metabolism; D051028:bcl-2-Associated X Protein / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D050759:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p21; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D045788:Sesquiterpenes, Germacrane; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53; D051028:bcl-2-Associated X Protein; D019938:Cyclin D1; C048393:germacrone; C495894:CDK2 protein, human; D051357:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 2