Study on TGF-β1-Mediated Apoptosis of Human Hepatoma Cell Lines

Objective The aim of the present study was to determine the relationship between the effect of TGF-β1 and apoptosis in human hepatoma cell lines.Methods Three human hepatic carcinoma cell lines, involving different status of the p53 gene respectively, were used in this study. TGF-β1-induced apoptosis in hepatic carcinoma cell lines was quantitated using TUNEL assay.Results Addition of TGF-β1 induced apoptosis only in HepG2 cells (wild type p53). It was indicated that there is positive correlation between the rate of apoptosis and status of p53 in hepatic carcinoma cell lines.Conclusion HepG2 cells seemed to be highly susceptible to TGF-β1-induced apoptosis compare with Hep3B and Huh-7 cell lines. TGF-β1 induces apoptosis in hepatic carcinoma cell lines through a p53-dependent pathway.