Extracts of Musa basjoo induce growth inhibition and changes in the protein expression of cell cycle control molecules in human colorectal cancer cell lines

Harutoshi Matsumoto; Saeko Ando; Eri Yoshimoto; Takamasa Numano; Nahida Sultana; Katsumi Fukamachi; Munekazu Iinuma; Kensuke Okuda; Kazunori Kimura; Masumi Suzui

doi:10.3892/ol.2022.13219

Extracts of Musa basjoo induce growth inhibition and changes in the protein expression of cell cycle control molecules in human colorectal cancer cell lines

Oncol Lett. 2022 Mar;23(3):99. doi: 10.3892/ol.2022.13219. Epub 2022 Jan 27.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Neurotoxicology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences and Medical School, Nagoya City University, Nagoya, Aichi 467-8601, Japan.
² Department of Clinical Pharmaceutics, Graduate School of Medical Sciences and Medical School, Nagoya City University, Nagoya, Aichi 467-8601, Japan.
³ Research and Development Division, DIMS Institute of Medical Science, Ichinomiya, Aichi 491-0113, Japan.
⁴ Laboratory of Pharmacognosy, Gifu Pharmaceutical University, Gifu-shi, Gifu 501-1196, Japan.
⁵ Laboratory of Bioorganic and Natural Products Chemistry, Kobe Pharmaceutical University, Kobe, Hyogo 658-8558, Japan.

Abstract

Musa basjoo (MB) is a species of the banana plant belonging to the genus Musa that has been used as a folk medicine. However, evidence-based biological activities and the molecular mechanism of action of MB are unknown. Thus, the aim of the present study was to examine whether the crude dried leaf extracts of MB inhibit the growth of colorectal (HT29 and HCT116) and other types (HepG2, MCF-7 and PC-3) of human cancer cell lines. Crude extracts of MB inhibited the growth of cells with IC₅₀ values of 136 µg/ml (acetone extract, HT29), 51 µg/ml (acetone extract, HCT116), 45 µg/ml (acetone extract, HepG2), 40 µg/ml (acetone extract, MCF-7), 29 µg/ml (acetone extract, PC-3), 175 µg/ml (methanol extract, HT29), 137 µg/ml (methanol extract, HCT116), 102 µg/ml (methanol extract, HepG2), 85 µg/ml (methanol extract, MCF-7), and 85 µg/ml (methanol extract, PC-3) in colony formation assays, and 126 µg/ml (acetone extract, HT29), 68 µg/ml (acetone extract, HCT116), 260 µg/ml (methanol extract, HT29), and 216 µg/ml (methanol extract, HCT116) in MTT assays. Thin layer chromatography analysis revealed the potential existence of aromatic compounds in the acetone extract of MB. Flow cytometric analysis indicated that the percentage of cells in G1 increased, and this was associated with a concomitant decrease of cells in the S and/or G2-M phases of the cell cycle. When colorectal cancer cells were treated with acetone extract of MB, there was a marked decrease in the levels of expression of the cyclin D1, cyclin E, cdk2 and cdk4 proteins and a marked increase in the levels of the expression of the p21^CIP1, p27^KIP1, and p53 proteins, but those of apoptosis-associated protein PARP did not change. There was a tendency for acetone extract of MB to inhibit xenograft tumor growth in mice. Collectively, the crude extracts of MB contain active components that exert growth inhibition of human cancer cells. This is the first systematic study of the anticancer activity of MB and may broaden insights into the possible clinical approach of specific herbal medicines.

Keywords: Musa basjoo; cell cycle control; growth inhibition; human cancer cells; tumor xenograft assay.

Grants and funding

This study was supported in part by grants from the Research Foundation for Oriental Medicine, Nagoya, Japan (grant nos. H27-2 and H30-6) and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan (grant nos. 22501050, 25430154 and 17K07223).