Objective: To investigate the potential threat of K. mikimotoi on human health by analyzing the negative effects of K. mikimotoi extract on three cancer cells, HepG2, HeLa and A549.
Methods: Inhibitory effect of K. mikimotoi extract on the proliferation of three cancer cells was observed by MTT assay and the relative amount of GM1 in cancer cell membrane was detected by immunofluorescence method.
Results: The extracts of K. mikimotoi significantly inhibited the proliferation of HeLa, HepG2 and A549 cells in a dose-and time-dependent manner. HeLa and A549 cells were more sensitive than HepG2 cell to the toxicity of K. mikimotoi extracts. However, there was no evident correlation between the proliferative inhibition and the amount of GM1 in cancer cell membrane.
Conclusion: There was a significant cytotoxicity of K. mikimotoi extracts to mammalian cells, which suggested that their potential threats might be existed to human health. However, the cytotoxic targets of K. mikimotoi extract on cell membrane were complex.