Epiberberine suppresses the metastasis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma cells by regulating the MMP-13 and JNK pathway

J Cell Mol Med. 2023 Dec;27(23):3796-3804. doi: 10.1111/jcmm.17954. Epub 2023 Sep 14.

Abstract

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is one of the most common histological types of head and neck cancer. Epiberberine is a potent antitumour agent for several types of cancer. This study is aimed at investigating the regulatory and molecular mechanism of epiberberine on HNSSC cell metastasis. The results showed that epiberberine inhibited the motility of Ca9-22 and FaDu cell lines at nontoxicity doses. Moreover, the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related proteins, vimentin, snail and slug, were found suppressing after epiberberine treatments. In addition, the JNK signalling cascade and the metalloproteinase 13 (MMP-13) expression were also found downregulated by epiberberine. In conclusion, the present study demonstrates that epiberberine suppresses cell migration and invasion by regulating the JNK pathway and MMP-13. These results suggest that epiberberine could be a potential antimetastatic agent in HNSCC cells.

Keywords: epiberberine; head and neck squamous cell carcinoma; matrix metalloproteinase-13; metastasis.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Antineoplastic Agents* / pharmacology
  • Carcinoma, Squamous Cell* / genetics
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Movement
  • Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic
  • Head and Neck Neoplasms* / drug therapy
  • Humans
  • MAP Kinase Signaling System
  • Matrix Metalloproteinase 13 / genetics
  • Matrix Metalloproteinase 13 / metabolism
  • Neoplasm Invasiveness
  • Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck / drug therapy

Substances

  • Matrix Metalloproteinase 13
  • epiberberine
  • Antineoplastic Agents