The inhibitory effects and mechanisms of crocin on human lung adenocarcinoma cell line SPC-A1

Objective To investigate the potential anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic effects of crocin on human lung adenocarcinoma cell line SPC-A1 and explore its possible anti-cancer mechanism.Methods Different doses of crocin(1,2,4,8,16mg/ml) were added to the SPC-A1 cells.The MTT assay was performed to reveal the inhibitory effect on cell proliferation.Inverted microscope was used to observe the morphological changes of the SPC-A1 cells.Flow cytometry using annexin V-FITC/PI staining was employed to measure the cell apoptosis and cell cycle.RT-PCR was used to detect mRNA expressions of p53,Bax and Bcl-2.Results Crocin treatment inhibited the proliferation and induced the apoptosis of SPC-A1 cells in a dose-dependent manner.After being treated by crocin for 48h,evident morphological changes including membrane shrinking,rounding shapping and budding to form apoptotic characters were observed.Flow cytometry showed the proportion of SPC-A1 cells increased at G0 /G1 phase while it decreased at S and G2 /M phases,indicating SPC-A1 cells were arrested at G0 /G1 phase by crocin treatment at 48h.The expressions of p53 and Bax mRNA were upregulated,and the expression of Bcl-2 mRNA were down-regulated in a dose-dependent manner.Conclusion Crocin can inhibit the proliferation of lung adenocarcinoma cell line SPC-A1 through inducing cell cycle arrest and apoptosis,with the possible mechanism of dysregulation of p53,Bcl-2 and Bax expression.