Eugenol Exerts Apoptotic Effect and Modulates the Sensitivity of HeLa Cells to Cisplatin and Radiation
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Department of Regenerative Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
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Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Minia University, 61519 Minia, Egypt
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Bavarian Health and Food Safety Authority, Eggenreuther Weg 43, 91058 Erlangen, Germany
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Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Wurzburg, Versbacher Str. 9, 97078 Wurzburg, Germany
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Department of Bioinformatics, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Am Hubland, 97074 Wuerzburg, Germany
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Academic Editors: Simona Collina and Mariarosaria Miloso
Molecules 2019, 24(21), 3979; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules24213979
Received: 27 September 2019 / Revised: 31 October 2019 / Accepted: 1 November 2019 / Published: 3 November 2019
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Anticancer Drugs)
Eugenol is a phytochemical present in different plant products, e.g., clove oil. Traditionally, it is used against a number of different disorders and it was suggested to have anticancer activity. In this study, the activity of eugenol was evaluated in a human cervical cancer (HeLa) cell line and cell proliferation was examined after treatment with various concentrations of eugenol and different treatment durations. Cytotoxicity was tested using lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) enzyme leakage. In order to assess eugenol’s potential to act synergistically with chemotherapy and radiotherapy, cell survival was calculated after eugenol treatment in combination with cisplatin and X-rays. To elucidate its mechanism of action, caspase-3 activity was analyzed and the expression of various genes and proteins was checked by RT-PCR and western blot analyses. Eugenol clearly decreased the proliferation rate and increased LDH release in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. It showed synergistic effects with cisplatin and X-rays. Eugenol increased caspase-3 activity and the expression of Bax, cytochrome c (Cyt-c), caspase-3, and caspase-9 and decreased the expression of B-cell lymphoma (Bcl)-2, cyclooxygenase-2 (Cox-2), and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β) indicating that eugenol mainly induced cell death by apoptosis. In conclusion, eugenol showed antiproliferative and cytotoxic effects via apoptosis and also synergism with cisplatin and ionizing radiation in the human cervical cancer cell line.
Keywords:
eugenol; HeLa cells; cisplatin; radiation; apoptosis