Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research

Original Research Article | OPEN ACCESS

Antiproliferative and apoptotic effects of angelicin in highly invasive prostate cancer cells

Qing Wang¹, You-Pei Wang², Hong Lin³, Li-Qing Zhang⁴, Ling-Jian Wu⁵, Ling-Xia Pang¹

¹Function Experiment Teaching Center, Department of Laboratory, The Affiliated Eye Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325000; ²Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics; ³Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325035; ⁴Operating Room, The First Affiliated Hospital; ⁵Department of Dermatological, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325000, China.

For correspondence:- Ling-Xia Pang Email: panglx35@gmail.com Tel:+86-57786689885

Received: 14 January 2014 Accepted: 1 July 2015 Published: 30 August 2015

Citation: Wang Q, Wang Y, Lin H, Zhang L, Wu L, Pang L. Antiproliferative and apoptotic effects of angelicin in highly invasive prostate cancer cells. Trop J Pharm Res 2015; 14(8):1405-1411 doi: 10.4314/tjpr.v14i8.12

© 2015 The authors.
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Abstract

Purpose: To demonstrate the anti-proliferative activity of angelicin against human prostate cancer (PC-3) cells and to evaluate its mechanism

Methods: MTT (3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) assay was used to assess the anticancer activity (growth inhibition) of angelicin in PC-3 cells. Fluorescence microscopy using Hoechst 33258 staining and inverted phase microscopy was employed to evaluate the effect of angelicin on nuclear morphology. Flow cytometry, using propidium iodide, was employed to study cell cycle-related effects of angelicin. Apoptosis induction by angelicin was examined by annexin V/PI assay.

Results: Angelicin induced potent growth inhibitory effects in human prostate cancer (PC-3) cells in a dose-dependent manner. Angelicin-treated cells exhibited chromatin condensation which implied an early apoptotic event. Inverted phase microscopy revealed that reduction of cell population occurred with increase in the angelicin dose. Flow cytometry results showed that angelicin induced cell cycle arrest in the sub-G1 phase. Angelicin induced both early and late apoptosis in PC-3 cells following a dose-dependent pattern.

Conclusion: Angelicin inhibits the growth of PC-3 human prostate cancer cells in vitro by inducing early and late apoptosis, cell cycle arrest and chromatin condensation.

Keywords: Angelicin, Coumarin, Prostate cancer, Anticancer activity, Apoptosis, Cell cycle arrest, Chromatin condensation, Flow cytometry