The Antiproliferative and Proapoptotic Effects of Cucurbitacin B on BPH-1 Cells via the p53/MDM2 Axis

  • Int J Mol Sci. 2023 Dec 28;25(1):442. doi: 10.3390/ijms25010442.
Ping Zhou  1  2 ,  Sisi Huang  1  2 ,  Congcong Shao  1  2 ,  Dongyan Huang  1  2 ,  Yingyi Hu  1  2 ,  Xin Su  1  2 ,  Rongfu Yang  1  2 ,  Juan Jiang  1  2 ,  Jianhui Wu  1  2
Affiliations
  • 1. Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Reproductive Health Drug and Devices, NHC Key Laboratory of Reproduction Regulation, Shanghai Institute for Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Technologies, Pharmacy School, Fudan University, Shanghai 200237, China.
  • 2. Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, Shanghai Institute for Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Technologies, Shanghai 200032, China.
PMID: 38203613 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25010442
Abstract

Cucurbitacin B (Cu B), a triterpenoid compound, has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities. Most studies only focus on the hepatoprotective activity of Cu B, and little effort has been geared toward exploring the effect of Cu B on the prostate. Our study identified that Cu B inhibited the proliferation of the benign prostatic hyperplasia epithelial cell line (BPH-1). At the molecular level, Cu B upregulated MDM2 and thrombospondin 1 (THBS1) mRNA levels. Immunocytochemistry results revealed that the protein expressions of p53 and MDM2 were upregulated in BPH-1 cells. Furthermore, Cu B upregulated THBS1 expression and downregulated COX-2 expression in the BPH-1 cell supernatant. Altogether, Cu B may inhibit prostate cell proliferation by activating the p53/MDM2 signaling cascade and downregulating the COX-2 expression.

Keywords
cucurbitacin B; p53 signaling pathway; prostatic hyperplasia; triterpenoid compound.
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