Objective: To isolate compound Paris saponin II (PS II) from Rhizoma Paridis and observe its antitumor activity.
Methods: PS II was isolated and determined by electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry, 1H and 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectral analysis. PS II was used to treat cancer cells to analyze the toxicity and relative time-and dose-dependent manner. Apoptosis of cells were investigated by flow cytometry and TUNEL assay. Western blotting was used to analyze the effects of PS II to MAPKs and mitochondrial apoptotic pathway.
Results: The anti-tumor activities of PS II on ovarian carcinoma cell line SKOV3 were investigated. The IC50 of PS II to SKOV3 was 4.81 micromol/L. Increased apoptosis rate in a dose- and time-dependent manner was observed by Flow cytometry and TUNEL. The activity of ERK1/2 was inhibited by PS II and increased expression of cytochrone c, caspase-3 and caspase-9 was also noticed after the treatment of PS II .
Conclusion: PS II can inhibit the growth of ovarian cancer cells SKOV3 through affecting the key proteins on MAPKs pathway and inhibiting the activity of ERK1/2 and eventually eliciting programmed cell death of SKOV3. The mitochondrial apoptotic pathway may be involved in the PSII induced apoptosis.