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  2. Role and Mechanism of Rhizopus Nigrum Polysaccharide EPS1-1 as Pharmaceutical for Therapy of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Role and Mechanism of Rhizopus Nigrum Polysaccharide EPS1-1 as Pharmaceutical for Therapy of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

  • Front Bioeng Biotechnol. 2020 Jun 9;8:509. doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2020.00509.
Guangyu Chu 1 Yingying Miao 2 Kexin Huang 3 Han Song 1 Liang Liu 2
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Department of Radiology, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, China.
  • 2 Department of Radiology, China-Japan Union Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, China.
  • 3 Department of Histology and Embryology, College of Basic Medicine, Jilin University, Changchun, China.
Abstract

Objective: This work is to study the effect of Rhizopus nigrum polysaccharide EPS1-1 on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in vitro and in vivo. Methods: HepG2 and Huh-7 cells and nude mice models of liver cancers were used in this study. The cells and nude mice were treated with EPS1-1 at different concentrations. The CCK8 assays were used to measure the proliferation activities of cells, Apoptosis was determined with flow cytometry, cell migration was measured by wound-healing assays, cell invasion was evaluated by Transwell assay, and the survival periods of different groups of tumor-bearing mice were compared. Real-Time PCR and Western blot were used to measure the expression levels of mRNAs and proteins of the genes related to proliferation, Apoptosis, migration, and invasion. Results: In vitro experiments revealed that when treated with EPS1-1, HepG2 and Huh-7 cell proliferation activities decreased, while there was an increase for the Apoptosis rate, and the migration and invasion capabilities were significantly reduced. In vivo experiments showed that EPS1-1 could significantly reduce the tumor growth and lung metastasis of HCC, and prolong the survival periods of tumor-bearing nude mice. Furthermore, EPS1-1 has no apparent damage to the heart, liver, and kidney. Further studies showed that EPS1-1 could affect the expression of proliferation-related genes CCND1 and c-Myc, apoptosis-related genes Bax and Bcl-2, and migration and invasion related genes Vimentin and Slug, thereby affecting the biological process of HCC. Conclusion: EPS1-1 can inhibit the malignant process of HCC in vitro and in vivo, which indicates that EPS1-1 has the potential value of clinical application as chemotherapy or adjuvant in the treatment of liver Cancer.

Keywords

EPS1-1; Rhizopus nigrum polysaccharide; hepatocellular carcinoma; in vitro experiment; nude mice.

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