Inhibition of Astragalus membranaceus polysaccharides against liver cancer cell HepG2

We have studied the inhibition of polysaccharides of Astragalus membranaceusagainst liver cancer cell HepG2. The polysaccharides at higher doses (25 mg/ml) have stronger antitumour effects, decreasing more than 40.5% (24 h) and 67.3% (48 h) of liver cancer HepG2 cell viability. A high percentage of apoptotic HepG2 cells was found at 25 mg/ml of A. membranaceus polysaccharides. 23.9 and 38.2% of cells experienced apoptosis when HepG2 cells were treated for 24 and 48 h with 25 mg/ml of A. membranaceus polysaccharides. Consequently, the results of the in vitro assays suggest that the A. membranaceus polysaccharides possesses strong antitumour activities, which is benefical to treatment of liver cancer.   Key words: Astragalus membranaceus polysaccharides, Antitumour, HepG2, MTT.