Ganoderma atrum polysaccharide induces anti-tumor activity via the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway related to activation of host immune response
✍ Scribed by Wen-Juan Li; Yi Chen; Shao-Ping Nie; Ming-Yong Xie; Ming He; Shen-Shen Zhang; Ke-Xue Zhu
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 2011
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 520 KB
- Volume
- 112
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0730-2312
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✦ Synopsis
Abstract
Ganoderma atrum polysaccharide (PSG‐1), the major active ingredient isolated from Ganoderma atrum, has been suggested as a candidate for cancer therapy. The aim of this study was to investigate the anti‐tumor effect of PSG‐1 using sarcoma 180 (S‐180) transplanted mice and further to examine the molecular mechanisms of PSG‐1‐induced anti‐tumor effect. Results showed that PSG‐1 significantly inhibited tumor growth in S‐180‐bearing mice. PSG‐1‐induced tumor apoptosis was associated with the alteration of Bcl‐2 family proteins, increase of reactive oxygen species generation, loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψ~m~), release of cytochrome c from the mitochondria into cytosol, and activation of caspase‐3 and ‐9. Elevation of immune function was also shown during PSG‐1‐induced tumor apoptosis, as evidenced by increase of spleen and thymus indexes, lymphocyte proliferation, concentrations of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐α, and interleukin‐2 in serum. Furthermore, the combined treatment of PSG‐1 and cyclophosphamide (CTX) results in an enhancement of the anti‐tumor effect of CTX alone via increased host immune response. These results suggested that PSG‐1 had a potent anti‐tumor activity by induction of tumor apoptosis through mitochondrial pathways, and immunoenhancement effect of PSG‐1 was related to its anti‐tumor effect. In addition, PSG‐1 enhanced CTX‐induced anti‐tumor activity in S‐180‐bearing mice. J. Cell. Biochem. 112: 860–871, 2011. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.