In the present study, the function and mechanism of cytokine-induced killer cells (CIK) combined with dendritic cells (DC-CIK) were examined in Lewis lung cancer (LLC) cells. Co-culture of CIK dendritic cells (DC) in vitro was used to investigate their proliferation and the antitumor effects on LLC cells. DC and CIK cells were collected from healthy human peripheral blood mononuclear cells and co-cultured as an experimental group, while LLC cells were cultured alone as a control group. Cell morphology was observed by an inverted microscope and an MTT assay was utilized to detect the proliferation of LLC cells. Expression of 14-3-3ζ and p-Bad were measured by western blot analysis. Compared with the control group, treatment of LLC cells with DC-CIK resulted in decreased cell adherence, reduced cell proliferation and abnormal morphological changes. Additionally, DC-CIK treatment of LLC cells resulted in the decreased expression of 14-3-3ζ and p-Bad protein in LLC cells, which may provide important information pertaining to the possible mechanism of DC-CIK-induced antitumor activity against LLC cells. The present study provides a theoretical and experimental basis for the clinical treatment of DC-CIK cell co-culture.
Keywords: Lewis lung cancer cell; cytokine-induced killer cells; dendritic cells; phosphorylated-Bad.