Jingfukang induces anti-cancer activity through oxidative stress-mediated DNA damage in circulating human lung cancer cells

• Main Authors: Zujun Que, Zhiyi Zhou, Bin Luo, Changsheng Dong, Yi Jiang, Hegen Li, Jianhui Tian
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: BMC 2019-08-01
• Series: BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine
• Subjects: Non-small cell lung cancer; Circulating tumor cell; Jinfukang; Apoptosis; Oxidative stress
• Online Access: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12906-019-2601-x

Abstract Background Metastasis is the main cause of lung cancer death. As a seed of metastasis, circulating tumor cells are an important target for metastasis intervention. The traditional Chinese medicine, Jinfukang, has been clinically available for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In this study, we investigated the action and underlying mechanisms of Jinfukang against circulating lung tumor cells. Methods The cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8), colony formation and cell cycle assays were used to study the cell proliferation ability. Flow cytometry was used to detect the apoptosis and the expression level of ROS and Caspase-3. Comet and TUNEL assays were used to detect DNA damage. DNA damage related pathway protein was detected by western blot. Results Jinfukang significantly inhibits the proliferation of CTC-TJH-01 cells by inducing G1 phase arrest and inhibits their colony formation in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, Jinfukang induces apoptosis in CTC-TJH-01 cells through the ROS-mediated ATM/ATR-p53 pathway and DNA damage. Conclusions Our findings suggest that Jinfukang may be a potential drug for lung cancer metastasis.