The Antiproliferative and Apoptotic Effects of Apigenin on Glioblastoma Cells

Authors

Trevor Stump, Cedarville UniversityFollow
Brittany Santee, Cedarville UniversityFollow
Lauren P. Williams, Cedarville UniversityFollow
Rachel Kunze, Cedarville UniversityFollow
Chelsae Heinze, Cedarville UniversityFollow
Eric Huseman, Cedarville UniversityFollow
Rebecca J. Gryka, Cedarville UniversityFollow
Denise Simpson, Cedarville UniversityFollow
Samson Amos, Cedarville UniversityFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

7-1-2017

Journal Title

The Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology

ISSN

2042-7158

Volume

69

Issue

7

First Page

907

Last Page

916

DOI

10.1111/jphp.12718

PubMed ID

28349530

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: Glioblastoma (GBM) is highly proliferative, infiltrative, malignant and the most deadly form of brain tumour. The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is overexpressed, amplified and mutated in GBM and has been shown to play key and important roles in the proliferation, growth and survival of this tumour. The goal of our study was to investigate the antiproliferative, apoptotic and molecular effects of apigenin in GBM.

METHODS: Proliferation and viability tests were carried out using the trypan blue exclusion, MTT and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) assays. Flow cytometry was used to examine the effects of apigenin on the cell cycle check-points. In addition, we determined the effects of apigenin on EGFR-mediated signalling pathways by Western blot analyses.

KEY FINDINGS: Our results showed that apigenin reduced cell viability and proliferation in a dose- and time-dependent manner while increasing cytotoxicity in GBM cells. Treatment with apigenin-induced is poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) cleavage and caused cell cycle arrest at the G2M checkpoint. Furthermore, our data revealed that apigenin inhibited EGFR-mediated phosphorylation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), AKT and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signalling pathways and attenuated the expression of Bcl-xL.

CONCLUSION: Our results demonstrated that apigenin has potent inhibitory effects on pathways involved in GBM proliferation and survival and could potentially be used as a therapeutic agent for GBM.

Keywords

Apigenin, apoptosis, epidermal growth factor receptor, glioblastoma, proliferation

Recommended Citation

Stump, Trevor; Santee, Brittany; Williams, Lauren P.; Kunze, Rachel; Heinze, Chelsae; Huseman, Eric; Gryka, Rebecca J.; Simpson, Denise; and Amos, Samson, "The Antiproliferative and Apoptotic Effects of Apigenin on Glioblastoma Cells" (2017). Pharmaceutical Sciences Faculty Publications. 174.
https://digitalcommons.cedarville.edu/pharmaceutical_sciences_publications/174