Selective induced apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in MCF7 and LNCap cell lines by skin mucus from round goby (Neogobius melanostomus) and common carp (Cyprinus carpio) through P53 expression

Abstract

The skin mucus in lower vertebrates such as fish with strong innate immune system has many unique and valuable bioactive compounds that can be used for inducing apoptosis in cancer cells. This study was looking for the cytotoxic potential of mucus from the two fish species, including round goby (Neogobius melanostomus) and common carp (Cyprinus carpio), and inducing apoptosis in MCF7 and LNCaP cancer cell lines via influencing P53 gene expression and cell cycle arrest. Results showed that the both mucus types have cytotoxic effects on the both cancer cell lines whereas they have no severe effect on normal primary fibroblast cells. In addition, round goby mucus and common carp mucus selectively induced apoptosis in the LNCaP and MCF7 cells, respectively, through up-regulating P53 gene and arresting cell cycle at the G1 phase. Taken together, this study suggested that the both mucus types can selectively influence P53 pathway and induce apoptosis in especial cancer cells. The skin mucus derived from round Goby and common Carp can be a promising candidate for investigation about apoptosis and molecular targeting therapy in cancer.

Keywords: Apoptosis; Cancer cell; Fish skin mucus; P53 pathway.

Fig. 1

Cytotoxicity assay of round goby mucus (left) and common carp mucus (right) in the primary fibroblast cell, LNCap and MCF7 cell lines after 72-h exposure. Significant differences versus the control are indicated as P < 0.05 (mean ± SD). Different letters in each group show significant difference for each compound.

Fig. 2

Histogram plots of apoptotic LNCaP cell line after 24-h exposure to the two doses of round goby mucus. Histogram plots were quantified by a flow cytometry and the cells were stained with propidium iodide (PI) and Annexin V-FITC (up) (n = 8). In the each plot (down), different letters indicate differences between the groups (P < 0.05) (mean ± SD).

Fig. 3

Histogram plots of apoptotic MCF7 cell line after 24-h exposure to the two doses of Common carp mucus. Histogram plots were quantified by a flow cytometry and the cells were stained with propidium iodide (PI) and Annexin V-FITC (up) (n = 8). In the each plot (down), different letters indicate differences between the groups (P < 0.05) (mean ± SD).

Fig. 4

Effect of round goby mucus on LNCaP cell cycle arrest after 24-h exposure analyzed by flow cytometry. Percentages of cells in each phase were calculated using FlowJo software and shown within the histograms. The data represented are from a representative experiment repeated three times with similar results.

Fig. 5

Effect of common carp mucus on MCF7 cell cycle arrest after 24-h exposure analyzed by flow cytometry. Percentages of cells in each phase were calculated using FlowJo software and shown within the histograms. The data represented are from a representative experiment repeated three times with similar results.

Fig. 6

Changes in the expression of P53 in LNCaP cell after 24-h exposure to round goby mucus (a) and in MCF7 cell after 24-h exposure to common carp mucus (b). The gene expression is shown as x-fold change compared to the control group and was standardized by the housekeeping gene (GAPDH). Different letters indicate significant differences between groups, (P < 0.05) (n = 8) (mean ± SD).