Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2009:4:251-9.
doi: 10.2147/ijn.s7932.

Synergistic effect of magnetic nanoparticles of Fe(3)O(4) with gambogic acid on apoptosis of K562 leukemia cells

Baoan Chen  1 , Yiqiong Liang, Weiwei Wu, Jian Cheng, Guohua Xia, Feng Gao, Jiahua Ding, Chong Gao, Zeye Shao, Guohong Li, Wenji Chen, Wenlin Xu, Xinchen Sun, Lijie Liu, Xiaomao Li, Xuemei Wang
Affiliations

Synergistic effect of magnetic nanoparticles of Fe(3)O(4) with gambogic acid on apoptosis of K562 leukemia cells

Baoan Chen et al. Int J Nanomedicine. 2009.

Abstract

Gambogic acid (GA) has a significant anticancer effect on a wide variety of solid tumors. Recently, many nanoparticles have been introduced as drug-delivery systems to enhance the efficiency of anticancer drug delivery. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential benefit of combination therapy with GA and magnetic nanoparticles of Fe(3)O(4) (MNPs-Fe(3)O(4)). The proliferation of K562 cells and their cytotoxicity were evaluated by MTT assay. Cell apoptosis was observed and analyzed by microscope and flow cytometry, respectively. Furthermore, real-time polymerase chain reaction and Western blotting analyses were performed to examine gene transcription and protein expression, respectively. The results showed that MNPs-Fe(3)O(4) dramatically enhanced GA-induced cytotoxicity and apoptosis in K562 cells. The typical morphological features of apoptosis treated with GA and MNPs-Fe(3)O(4) were observed under an optical microscope and a fluorescence microscope, respectively. The transcription of caspase-3 and bax gene in the group treated with GA and MNPs-Fe(3)O(4) was higher than that in the GA-alone group or MNPs-Fe(3)O(4)-alone group, but the transcription of bcl-2, nuclear factor-kappaB, and survivin degraded as did the expression of corresponding proteins in K562 cells. Our data suggests a potential clinical application of a combination of GA and MNPs-Fe(3)O(4) in leukemia therapy.

Keywords: K562 leukemia cells; apoptosis; gambogic acid; magnetic nanoparticles of Fe3O4; traditional Chinese medicine.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Effect of the different concentrations of gambogic acid (GA) on growth inhibition ratio of K562 cells by MTT assay.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Growth inhibition ratio of GA with or without MNPs-Fe3O4-treated K562 cells for 48 hours. Abbreviations: MNPs-Fe3O4, magnetic nanoparticles of Fe3O4; GA, gambogic acid.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Effect of MNPs-Fe3O4 on GA-induced apoptosis in K562 cells for 48 hours. A) Control; B) Incubated with 10 mg/L MNPs-Fe3O4; C) Incubated with 0.6 mg/L GA; D) Incubated with 0.6 mg/L GA and 10 mg/L MNPs-Fe3O4. Abbreviations: MNPs-Fe3O4, magnetic nanoparticles of Fe3O4; GA, gambogic acid.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Morphological features of K562 cells after treatment for 48 hours by optical microscope (1000x, Wright staining). A) Control; B) Incubated with 0.6 mg/L GA and 10 mg/L MNPs-Fe3O4; C) Incubated with 6 mg/L GA. Abbreviations: MNPs-Fe3O4, magnetic nanoparticles of Fe3O4; GA, gambogic acid.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Nucleolus morphological changes of K562 cells after different treatment for 48 hours under fluorescence microscope (400x, DAPI staining). A) Control; B) Incubated with 0.6 mg/L GA; C) Incubated with 0.6 mg/L GA and 10 mg/L MNPs-Fe3O4. Abbreviations: MNPs-Fe3O4, magnetic nanoparticles of Fe3O4; GA, gambogic acid.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Transcription of caspase-3, bax, bcl-2, NF-κB, and survivin in K562 cells after treatment of GA with or without MNPs-Fe3O4 for 48 hours. A) Control; B) Incubated with 10 mg/L MNPs-Fe3O4; C) Incubated with 0.6 mg/L GA; D) Incubated with 0.6 mg/L GA and 10 mg/L MNPs-Fe3O4. Notes: *,**P < 0.05, synergia of GA with MNPs-Fe3O4 compared to GA alone; #,##,***P < 0.05, synergia of GA with MNPs-Fe3O4 compared to GA alone. Abbreviations: MNPs-Fe3O4, magnetic nanoparticles of Fe3O4; GA, gambogic acid; NF-κB, nuclear factor-kappaB.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Expression of caspase-3, bax, bcl-2, NF-κB, and survivin protein in K562 cells by western blot after treatment of GA and/or MNPs-Fe3O4 for 48 hours. Line 1: Control; Line 2: Incubated with 10 mg/L MNPs-Fe3O4; Line 3: Incubated with 0.6 mg/L GA; Line 4: Incubated with 0.6 mg/L GA and 10 mg/L MNPs-Fe3O4. Abbreviations: MNPs-Fe3O4, magnetic nanoparticles of Fe3O4; GA, gambogic acid; NF-κB, nuclear factor-kappaB.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Min LW. New therapeutic aspects of flavones: The nticancer properties of Scutellaria and its main active constituents Wogonin, Baicalein and Baicalin. Cancer Treat Rev. 2009;35(1):57–68. - PubMed
    1. Pandey MK, Sung B, Ahn KS, et al. Gambogic acid, a novel ligand for transferrin receptor, potentiates TNF-induced apoptosis through modulation of the nuclear factor-κB signaling pathway. Blood. 2007;110(10):3517–3525. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Panthong A, Norkaew P, Kanjanapothi D, Taesotikul T, Anantachoke N, Reutrakul V. Anti-inflammatory, analgesic and antipyretic activities of the extract of gamboge from Garcinia hanburyi Hook. J Ethnopharmacol. 2007;111(2):335–340. - PubMed
    1. Zhao L, Guo QL, You QD, Wu ZQ, Gu HY. Gambogic acid induces apoptosis and regulates expressions of Bax and Bcl-2 protein in human gastric carcinoma MGC-803 cells. Biol Pharm Bull. 2004;27(7):998–1003. - PubMed
    1. Liu W, Guo QL, You QD, Zhao L, Hong Y, Yuan ST. Anticancer effect and apoptosis induction of gambogic acid in human gastric cancer line BGC-823. World J Gastroenterol. 2005;11(24):3655–3659. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms