Evaluation of antitumor, immunomodulatory and free radical scavenging effects of a new herbal prescription seaweed complex preparation

• Published in: Journal of Ocean University of China Vol. 12; no. 3; pp. 515 - 520
• Main Authors: Liu, Xin, Shao, Changlun, Kong, Wenwen, Fang, Yuchun, Wang, Changyun
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.09.2013; Springer Nature B.V; Biology Institute of Shandong Academy of Sciences/Key Laboratory for Biosensors of Shandong Province,Jinan 250014, P.R.China%Key Laboratory of Marine Drugs, Ministry of Education, Marine Drug and Food Institute, Ocean University of China,Qingdao 266003, P.R.China; Key Laboratory of Marine Drugs, Ministry of Education, Marine Drug and Food Institute, Ocean University of China,Qingdao 266003, P.R.China
• Subjects: Aquatic plants; Cancer; Chinese medicine; Earth and Environmental Science; Earth Sciences; Free radicals; Marine; Meteorology; Oceanography; Pharmacology; antitumor; traditional Chinese medicine preparation; Seaweed complex preparation; immunomodulatory; free radical scavenging
• ISSN: 1672-5182; 1993-5021; 1672-5174
• DOI: 10.1007/s11802-013-2017-z

Seaweed Complex Preparation (SCP) is a clinical traditional Chinese medicine preparation which is composed of seven traditional Chinese herbs, and it has been used for treatment of lung cancer, liver cancer and digestive cancer. However, little information is available about the pharmacodynamic basis. The antitumor, immunomodulatory and free radical scavenging effects of SCP were evaluated in this study. Transplanted tumor in vivo method was used to determine the antitumor effect. The effects on splenocyte proliferation and phagocytosis of macrophages in tumor-bearing mice were measured by the MTT method and the phagocytizing cock red blood cell (CRBC) method respectively. The scavenging activities of SCP on DPPH and hydroxyl radicals in vitro were investigated. It was found that the medium-dose and high-dose of SCP could significantly inhibit the growth of transplanted hepatic tumor of murine hepatocarcinoma cell line H22, and promote proliferation of splenocytes and phagocytosis of macrophages. SCP possessed noticeable scavenging activities on DPPH and hydroxyl radicals. The antitumor effects of SCP might be achieved by improving immune system and scavenging free radicals, which is in accordance with the viewpoint of traditional Chinese medicine in promoting the body resistance and eliminating pathogenic factors for cancer treatment.