Journal of Jilin University(Medicine Edition) ›› 2020, Vol. 46 ›› Issue (04): 779-785.doi: 10.13481/j.1671-587x.20200418

• Research in basic medicine • Previous Articles    

Effect of berberine hydrochloride on exosomes of cervical cancer HeLa cells and its mechanism

WANG Jing, GE Jing, WANG Xu, FANG Guiying, DAI Lili, LIU Jing   

  1. Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, First Hospital, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang 050000, China
  • Received:2019-09-23 Published:2020-08-20

Abstract: Objective: To observe the intervention effect of berberine hydrochloride on the exosomes released by cervical cancer HeLa cells, and to explore its effects on the abilities of proliferation and metastasis of cancer cells. Methods: The cervical cancer HeLa cells were divided into control group and low, medium and high doses of berberine hydrochloride groups, and they were intervented with 0, 10, 20 and 40 mg·L-1berberine hydrochloride for 24 h. High-speed centrifugation was used to extract the exosomes and Western blotting method was used to detect the expression levels of exosome markers CD81, CD63 and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase(PI3K)/protein-serine-threonine kinase(Akt) signaling pathway related proteins. MTT assay was used to determine the inhibitory rates of growth of the HeLa cells.Scratch assay was used to measure the migration rate of cells. Transwell assay was used to detect the number of transmembrane cells. Results: Compared with control group, the expression levels of cervical cancer cell exosome markers CD81 and CD63 proteins in the exosomes in low, medium and high doses of berberine hydrochloride groups were significantly decreased (P<0.05), while the inhibitory rates of growth of cancer cells were increased significantly (P<0.05); the migration rates of cells and the number of transmembrane cells were decreased significantly (P<0.05),and the expression levels of PI3K, Akt and phosphorylated Akt (p-Akt) proteins in the cancer cells were significantly decreased (P<0.05).Compared with low dose of berberine hydrochloride group, the expression levels of CD81 and CD63 proteins in the exosomes in medium and high doses of berberine hydrochloride groups were significantly decreased (P<0.05), while the inhibitory rates of growth of cancer cells were increased significantly (P<0.05); the migration rates of cells and the number of transmembrane cells were decreased significantly (P<0.05), and the expression levels of PI3K, Akt and p-Akt proteins in the cancer cells were significantly decreased (P<0.05).Compared with medium dose of berberine hydrochloride group, the expression levels of CD81 and CD63 proteins in the exosomes in high dose of berberine hydrochloride group were significantly decreased (P<0.05), while the inhibitory rate of growth of cancer cells were increased significantly (P<0.05); the migration rates of cells and the number of transmembrane cells were decreased significantly (P<0.05), and the expression levels of PI3K, Akt and p-Akt proteins in the cancer cells were significantly decreased (P<0.05) in a concentration-dependent manner. Conclusion: Berberine hydrochloride can inhibit the exosome secretion of cervical cancer cells and the proliferation of cancer cells, and reduce the the abilities of invasion and metastasis of cancer cells. Its mechanism may be related to the down-regulation of the expressions of the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway related proteins.

Key words: berberine hydrochloride, exosome, cervical neoplasms, phosphatidylinositol-3-kinases, protein-serine-threonine kinase, signaling pathway

CLC Number: 

  • R737.33