title: Synergistic inhibition of cancer cell proliferation with a combination of δ-tocotrienol and ferulic acid.
abstract: Rice bran consists of many functional compounds and thus much attention has been focused on the health benefits of its components. Here, we investigated the synergistic inhibitory effects of its components, particularly δ-tocotrienol (δ-T3) and ferulic acid (FA), against the proliferation of an array of cancer cells, including DU-145 (prostate cancer), MCF-7 (breast cancer), and PANC-1 (pancreatic cancer) cells. The combination of δ-T3 and FA markedly reduced cell proliferation relative to δ-T3 alone, and FA had no effect when used alone. Although δ-T3 induced G1 arrest by up-regulating p21 in PANC-1 cells, more cells accumulated in G1 phase with the combination of δ-T3 and FA. This synergistic effect was attributed to an increase in the cellular concentration of δ-T3 by FA. Our results suggest that the combination of δ-T3 and FA may present a new strategy for cancer prevention and therapy.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Applied Life Sciences, Niigata University of Pharmacy and Applied Life Sciences, Niigata 956-8603, Japan. Electronic address: eitsuka@nupals.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Takahiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Eitsuka
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Applied Life Sciences, Niigata University of Pharmacy and Applied Life Sciences, Niigata 956-8603, Japan.
authors.forename: Naoto
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Tatewaki
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Applied Life Sciences, Niigata University of Pharmacy and Applied Life Sciences, Niigata 956-8603, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nishida
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Applied Life Sciences, Niigata University of Pharmacy and Applied Life Sciences, Niigata 956-8603, Japan.
authors.forename: Tadao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kurata
authors.affiliation: Food & Biodynamic Chemistry Laboratory, Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Tohoku University, Sendai 981-8555, Japan.
authors.forename: Kiyotaka
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nakagawa
authors.affiliation: Food & Biodynamic Chemistry Laboratory, Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Tohoku University, Sendai 981-8555, Japan.
authors.forename: Teruo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Miyazawa
mesh_terms: D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects*; D003373:Coumaric Acids / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004357:Drug Synergism; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D014810:Vitamin E / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D003373:Coumaric Acids; D014810:Vitamin E; C082097:tocotrienol, delta; C004999:ferulic acid
keywords: Ferulic acid; Synergistic effect; Tocotrienol; p21