The effect of medicarpin on PTEN/AKT signal pathway in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

• Published in: Journal of cancer research and therapeutics Vol. 18; no. 1; pp. 180 - 184
• Main Authors: Yiğin, Aysel, Donmez, Huseyin, Hitit, Mustafa, Seven, Sena, Eser, Nadire, Kurar, Ercan, Seven, Mehmet
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: India Wolters Kluwer India Pvt. Ltd 01.01.2022; Medknow Publications and Media Pvt. Ltd; Medknow Publications & Media Pvt. Ltd
• Subjects: Antimitotic agents; Antineoplastic agents; Care and treatment; Cell Line, Tumor; Cell Proliferation; Cellular signal transduction; Development and progression; Gene expression; Genetic aspects; Head & neck cancer; Head and neck cancer; Head and Neck Neoplasms - drug therapy; Head and Neck Neoplasms - genetics; Health aspects; HEK293 Cells; Humans; Isoflavones; Pharmacology, Experimental; Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases - genetics; Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases - metabolism; Prospective Studies; Protein kinases; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt - genetics; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt - metabolism; PTEN Phosphohydrolase - genetics; PTEN Phosphohydrolase - metabolism; Pterocarpans; Signal Transduction; Squamous cell carcinoma; Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck - drug therapy; Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck - genetics; Turkey; Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma; medicarpin; PTEN/AKT signal pathway; in vitro
• ISSN: 0973-1482; 1998-4138
• DOI: 10.4103/jcrt.jcrt_641_21

Background/Aim: We aimed to investigate the in vitro modulating effects of medicarpin on the PI3K/AKT signal pathway gene expressions in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Materials and Methods: The effect of medicarpin on PTEN and other associated genes in the PTEN/AKT signal pathway was investigated by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide, real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction, and Western blot analysis in the SCCL-MT1 (HNSCC) and control (HEK-293) cell lines. Results: The IC50 dose was 80 μM as a result of medicarpin treatment on HNSCC cells (P = 0.0006). It was found that PTEN and AKT gene expressions increased after the medicarpin administration while PDK1 gene expression was decreased in SCCL-MT1 cells (P = 0.0002, P = 0.0003, and P = 0.05, respectively). Protein expression results showed that medicarpin-treated cells significantly increased in pAKT (P = 0.024), pPTEN (P = 0.032), and decreased pPDK1 (P = 0.059) in SCCL-MT1. Conclusions: Our data show that medicarpin modulates HNSCC cells by increasing the PTEN and decreasing PDK1 expressions. PDK1 gene expression effects mTOR pathway which may increase AKT gene. Our study suggests that both medicarpin extracts combination with the HNSCC drug may be more effective in cancer treatment. Future prospective studies that integrate molecular and pharmacogenetic studies are crucial for revealing the mechanism and preventive medical efforts.