In Vitro and in Vivo Antimammary Tumor Activities and Mechanisms of the Apple Total Triterpenoids

• Published in: Journal of agricultural and food chemistry 2012-09, Vol.60 (37), p.9430-9436
• Main Authors: He, Xiangjiu, Wang, Yihai, Hu, Hui, Zhang, Zhenxue
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: animal models; Animal productions; Animals; anticarcinogenic activity; Apoptosis - drug effects; apples; Biological and medical sciences; breast neoplasms; Breast Neoplasms - drug therapy; Breast Neoplasms - pathology; Caco-2 Cells; cardiovascular diseases; Cell Cycle - drug effects; Cell Proliferation - drug effects; chronic diseases; colorectal neoplasms; Female; Food industries; Fruit - chemistry; Fruit and vegetable industries; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Hep G2 Cells; Humans; liver neoplasms; Malus - chemistry; mammary neoplasms (animal); Mammary Neoplasms, Animal - chemically induced; Mammary Neoplasms, Animal - drug therapy; Mammary Neoplasms, Animal - pathology; MCF-7 Cells; membrane potential; NF-kappa B - physiology; Oleanolic Acid - analysis; Oleanolic Acid - pharmacology; Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases - physiology; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt - physiology; Rats; Terrestrial animal productions; Triterpenes - analysis; Triterpenes - pharmacology; Triterpenes - therapeutic use; triterpenoids; Ursolic Acid; Vertebrates
• ISSN: 0021-8561; 1520-5118
• DOI: 10.1021/jf3026925

Consumption of apples has been linked to the prevention of various chronic diseases, including tumors and cardiovascular diseases. The apple total triterpenoid content (ATT) was extracted and concentrated from apple peels. The in vitro and in vivo antitumor activities, related antitumor mechanisms, were investigated. In vitro, ATT showed potent antiproliferative activities against human breast cancer (MCF-7, MDA-MB-231), human colon cancer (Caco-2), and human liver cancer (HepG2) cell lines. In vivo antitumor experiments showed that ATT could substantially reduce the occurrence and growth of mammary tumor with a good dose-dependent manner in a rat model. During the apoptosis in MDA-MB-231 cells induced by ATT, the caspase-independent pathway was involved in the process of apoptosis, and the mitochondrial transmembrane potential was markedly reduced. Also the PI3K/Akt/NF-κB pathway was activated. These results indicated that ATT-induced apoptosis of MDA-MB-231 cells may involve a mitochondrial-related pathway.