Gambogic acid induces apoptotic cell death in T98G glioma cells

  • Bioorg Med Chem Lett. 2016 Feb 1;26(3):1097-1101. doi: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2015.11.043.
Mya Thida  1 ,  Dae Won Kim  2 ,  Thi Thu Thuy Tran  3 ,  Minh Quan Pham  3 ,  Heesu Lee  4 ,  Inki Kim  5 ,  Jae Wook Lee  6
Affiliations
  • 1. Natural Product Research Center, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Gangneung 210-340, Republic of Korea.
  • 2. Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Research Institute of Oral Science, College of Dentistry, Gangneung Wonju National University, Gangneung 210-702, Republic of Korea.
  • 3. Institute of Natural Products Research, Vietnamese Academy of Science and Technology, 18 Hoang Quoc Viet, Cay Giay, Hanoi, Viet Nam.
  • 4. Department of Oral Anatomy, College of Dentistry, Gangneung Wonju National University, Gangneung 210-702, Republic of Korea.
  • 5. Department of Medicine, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul 138-736, Republic of Korea; Asan Institute for Life Sciences, Asan Medical Center, Seoul 138-736, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: [email protected].
  • 6. Natural Product Research Center, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Gangneung 210-340, Republic of Korea; Department of Biological Chemistry, University of Science and Technology, Daejeun, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: [email protected].
PMID: 26631318 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2015.11.043
Abstract

Gambogic acid (GA), a natural product with a xanthone structure, has a broad range of anti-proliferative effects on Cancer cell lines. We evaluated GA for its cytotoxic effects on T98G glioblastoma cells. GA exhibited potent anti-proliferative activity and induced Apoptosis in T98G glioblastoma cells in a dose-dependent manner. Incubation of cells with GA revealed apoptotic features including increased Bax and AIF expression, cytochrome c release, and cleavage of Caspase-3, -8, -9, and PARP, while Bcl-2 expression was downregulated. Furthermore, GA induced Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) generation in T98G cells. Our results indicate that GA increases Bax- and AIF-associated apoptotic signaling in glioblastoma cells.

Keywords
Anticancer; Apoptosis; Gambogic acid; Glioblastoma; Reactive oxygen species (ROS).