Potential anticancer effect of aspirin and 2'‑hydroxy‑2,3,5'‑trimethoxychalcone‑linked polymeric micelles against cervical cancer through apoptosis
Kang Lee, Suji Baek, Myeong Yoon, Ji Sun Park, Bok Sil Hong, Sang H. Lee, Seung Jae Oh, Seung Kwon, Aeju Lee, Dae Woo Lee, Kang‐Seo Park, Byung-In Moon
Abstract
Although early diagnosis and treatment of cancers in women are achievable through continuous diagnostic tests, cervical cancer (CVC) still has a high mortality rate. In the present study, we investigated whether certain nanoparticles (NPs), comprising aspirin conjugated 2'‑hydroxy‑2,3,5'‑trimethoxychalcone chemicals, could induce the apoptosis of cancer cells. HeLa cells were treated with NPs and the cell viability was evaluated using WST‑1 assay. Protein expression of Ki‑67 was measured using immunocytochemistry. In addition, the apoptotic effect of NPs was determined using TUNEL assay. To investigate the apoptosis signaling pathways, reverse transcription quantitative PCR was performed and lipid accumulation was observed via holotomographic microscopy. The IC<sub>50</sub> value of the NPs was 4.172 <em>µ</em>M in HeLa cells. Furthermore, 10 <em>µ</em>M NPs significantly inhibited the cell proliferation and stimulated the apoptosis of HeLa cells. In addition, apoptosis and mitochondrial dysfunction were induced by the NPs through lipid accumulation in HeLa cells, leading to apoptotic signaling cascades. Taken together, the results from the present study demonstrated that the NPs developed promoted apoptosis though efficient lipid accumulation in HeLa cells, suggesting that they may provide a novel way to improve the efficacy of CVC anticancer treatment.