Piper betle stem extract induces apoptosis through mitochondria inactivation, p38MAPK activation and ErB2/ErbB3 suppression on oral squamous cell carcinoma cells

Background: Oral cancers are a group of carcinomas that appear in the oral cavity. The cause of oral cancer is still unclear. However, betel nut chewing, smoking and drinking alcohol are all known risk factors for oral cancers, among which the habit of chewing of betel nuts is known to be associated...

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Main Authors: Meng-Tse Lee, Chi-I Chang, Jen-Jie Lin, Yu-Jen Wu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2022-08-01
Series:Phytomedicine Plus
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667031322000781
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author Meng-Tse Lee
Chi-I Chang
Jen-Jie Lin
Yu-Jen Wu
author_facet Meng-Tse Lee
Chi-I Chang
Jen-Jie Lin
Yu-Jen Wu
author_sort Meng-Tse Lee
collection DOAJ
description Background: Oral cancers are a group of carcinomas that appear in the oral cavity. The cause of oral cancer is still unclear. However, betel nut chewing, smoking and drinking alcohol are all known risk factors for oral cancers, among which the habit of chewing of betel nuts is known to be associated with the highest risk of oral cancer. Hypothesis/Purpose: This study aimed to examine the mechanisms of anti-cancer effects of the Piper betle (P. betle) stem. Methods: In this study, MTT assays, cell morphology analysis and flow cytometry were employed to evaluate the anti-cancer effects of an extract of the P. betle stem on human oral squamous cell carcinoma cell lines Cal-27 and Ca9-22. Potential effects on cell proliferation and apoptotic molecular mechanisms were evaluated by western blotting. Results: Treatment with P. betle stem extract inhibited cell proliferation in Cal-27 and Ca9-22 cells, and its effect on cell growth was mediated by a mechanism associated with apoptosis. The apoptotic cell death involved mitochondrial inactivation, causing downregulation of the expressions of Bcl-2 and Bcl-xl and increasing the expressions of Bax and Bad. Activation of p38MAPK and inhibition of the expressions of ErbB2 and ErbB3 were also involved in the P. betle stem extract-induced apoptosis in oral cancer cells. Conclusion: The findings from this study indicated that crude extract of the P. betle stem may regulate signaling pathways via apoptosis, suggesting that this extract has great potential for development as a new drug for the treatment of oral cancer.
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spelling doaj.art-fc46959c9ce24f99bf2de70f30bd1d9a2022-12-22T03:22:03ZengElsevierPhytomedicine Plus2667-03132022-08-0123100295Piper betle stem extract induces apoptosis through mitochondria inactivation, p38MAPK activation and ErB2/ErbB3 suppression on oral squamous cell carcinoma cellsMeng-Tse Lee0Chi-I Chang1Jen-Jie Lin2Yu-Jen Wu3Department of Family Medicine, Antai Medical Care Corporation, Antai Tian-Sheng Memorial Hospital, Pingtung 92842, TaiwanDepartment of Biological Science and Technology, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 91201, TaiwanYu Jun Biotechnology Co., Ltd., Pingtung 91202, Taiwan; Department of Food and Nutrition, Mei-Ho University, Pingtung 91202, Taiwan; Corresponding author at: Department of Food and Nutrition, Mei-Ho University, Pingtung 91202, TaiwanYu Jun Biotechnology Co., Ltd., Pingtung 91202, Taiwan; Department of Food and Nutrition, Mei-Ho University, Pingtung 91202, Taiwan; Corresponding author at: Department of Food and Nutrition, Mei-Ho University, Pingtung 91202, TaiwanBackground: Oral cancers are a group of carcinomas that appear in the oral cavity. The cause of oral cancer is still unclear. However, betel nut chewing, smoking and drinking alcohol are all known risk factors for oral cancers, among which the habit of chewing of betel nuts is known to be associated with the highest risk of oral cancer. Hypothesis/Purpose: This study aimed to examine the mechanisms of anti-cancer effects of the Piper betle (P. betle) stem. Methods: In this study, MTT assays, cell morphology analysis and flow cytometry were employed to evaluate the anti-cancer effects of an extract of the P. betle stem on human oral squamous cell carcinoma cell lines Cal-27 and Ca9-22. Potential effects on cell proliferation and apoptotic molecular mechanisms were evaluated by western blotting. Results: Treatment with P. betle stem extract inhibited cell proliferation in Cal-27 and Ca9-22 cells, and its effect on cell growth was mediated by a mechanism associated with apoptosis. The apoptotic cell death involved mitochondrial inactivation, causing downregulation of the expressions of Bcl-2 and Bcl-xl and increasing the expressions of Bax and Bad. Activation of p38MAPK and inhibition of the expressions of ErbB2 and ErbB3 were also involved in the P. betle stem extract-induced apoptosis in oral cancer cells. Conclusion: The findings from this study indicated that crude extract of the P. betle stem may regulate signaling pathways via apoptosis, suggesting that this extract has great potential for development as a new drug for the treatment of oral cancer.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667031322000781Piper betle stemCrude extractOral cancerApoptosisp38MAPKErB2/ErbB3
spellingShingle Meng-Tse Lee
Chi-I Chang
Jen-Jie Lin
Yu-Jen Wu
Piper betle stem extract induces apoptosis through mitochondria inactivation, p38MAPK activation and ErB2/ErbB3 suppression on oral squamous cell carcinoma cells
Phytomedicine Plus
Piper betle stem
Crude extract
Oral cancer
Apoptosis
p38MAPK
ErB2/ErbB3
title Piper betle stem extract induces apoptosis through mitochondria inactivation, p38MAPK activation and ErB2/ErbB3 suppression on oral squamous cell carcinoma cells
title_full Piper betle stem extract induces apoptosis through mitochondria inactivation, p38MAPK activation and ErB2/ErbB3 suppression on oral squamous cell carcinoma cells
title_fullStr Piper betle stem extract induces apoptosis through mitochondria inactivation, p38MAPK activation and ErB2/ErbB3 suppression on oral squamous cell carcinoma cells
title_full_unstemmed Piper betle stem extract induces apoptosis through mitochondria inactivation, p38MAPK activation and ErB2/ErbB3 suppression on oral squamous cell carcinoma cells
title_short Piper betle stem extract induces apoptosis through mitochondria inactivation, p38MAPK activation and ErB2/ErbB3 suppression on oral squamous cell carcinoma cells
title_sort piper betle stem extract induces apoptosis through mitochondria inactivation p38mapk activation and erb2 erbb3 suppression on oral squamous cell carcinoma cells
topic Piper betle stem
Crude extract
Oral cancer
Apoptosis
p38MAPK
ErB2/ErbB3
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667031322000781
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