Dioscorea bulbifera polysaccharide and cyclophosphamide combination enhances anti-cervical cancer effect and attenuates immunosuppression and oxidative stress in mice

• Published in: Scientific reports 2016-01, Vol.6 (1), p.19185-19185, Article 19185
• Main Authors: Cui, Hongxia, Li, Ting, Wang, Liping, Su, Yan, Xian, Cory J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 13; 631/67/1059; 692/4028/67/1059/99; Animals; Antineoplastic Agents - pharmacology; Biomarkers; Body weight; Body Weight - drug effects; CD4 antigen; CD8 antigen; Cell Line, Tumor; Cervical cancer; Cervix; Chemotherapy; Cyclophosphamide; Cyclophosphamide - pharmacology; Dioscorea - chemistry; Disease Models, Animal; Drug Synergism; Female; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Immunomodulation - drug effects; Immunosuppression; Inflammation; L-Lactate dehydrogenase; L-Lactate Dehydrogenase - metabolism; Lactic acid; Lymphocyte Count; Lymphocytes T; Malondialdehyde; Malondialdehyde - metabolism; Mice; multidisciplinary; Neoplasms - drug therapy; Neoplasms - immunology; Neoplasms - pathology; Organ Size - drug effects; Oxidative stress; Oxidative Stress - drug effects; Oxidizing agents; Peripheral blood; Plant Extracts - chemistry; Plant Extracts - pharmacology; Polysaccharides; Polysaccharides - chemistry; Polysaccharides - pharmacology; Rodents; Saccharides; Science; Spleen; Superoxide dismutase; Superoxide Dismutase - blood; Superoxide Dismutase - metabolism; T-Lymphocyte Subsets - immunology; T-Lymphocyte Subsets - metabolism; Thymus; Tumor Burden - drug effects; Tumors; Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/srep19185

Cyclophosphamide (CTX) is commonly used in cancer chemotherapy, which causes immunosuppression and tissue oxidative stress at high doses. As potential protective agents, some polysaccharides were shown to have anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory and/or anti-oxidant properties. This study explored potential effects of oral treatment of Dioscorea bulbifera polysaccharides (DBLP at 100 or 150 mg/kg) in U14 cervical tumor-bearing mice treated with CTX (25 mg/kg). While CTX suppressed tumor growth (65.4% inhibition) and DBLP alone also inhibited tumor (25.6% at 100 mg/kg or 37.6% at 150 mg/kg), CTX+DBLP combination produced tumor inhibition rates of 5.6 (for 100 mg/kg DBLP) or 9% (for 150 mg/kg) higher than CTX alone. While tumor itself and CTX treatment reduced thymus and/or spleen/body weight indices, DBLP alone or CTX + DBLP combination attenuated this reduction. DBLP lowered peripheral blood T-cell subpopulation CD 4+ /CD 8+ ratio and DBLP+CTX combination attenuated CTX effect in lifting CD 4+ /CD 8+ ratio. Tumor itself and CTX treatment heightened oxidative stress (with decreased superoxide dismutase but increased lactate dehydrogenase and malondialdehyde levels in serum and tissues), which was attenuated by DBLP treatment and DBLP+CTX combination suppressed CTX-induced oxidative stress. Combination use of DBLP with CTX can potentially enhance CTX anti-tumor effect and can attenuate CTX-induced immunosuppression and oxidative stress in U14 cervical tumor-bearing mice.