Study on the inhibiting effect of TanshinoneI on HepG2 cell line in vitro

Objective This study was performed to evaluate the anti-tumor effect and mechanism of TanshinoneⅠ by HepG2 cell line in vitro. Methods The human hepatoma cell (HepG2) was cultured in medium containing serial concentration of TanshinoneⅠ for 72 hours. Then the growth rate and the morphological change were analysed. Cell apoptosis percentage and cell cycle phase distribution were measured by flow cytometrice assay. The expression of proliferation and apoptosis associated proteins of bax,bcl?2 gene in HepG2 cell were determined by using immunocytochemistry. Results TanshinoneⅠ inhibited proliferation of HepG2 cell. The cell cycle was arrested in G 0/G 1 phase and apoptosis was induced. The onset of apoptosis was related to the up-regulation of bax and down-regulation of bcl?2 in protein level(P0.01). Conclusion These studies suggest that TanshinoneⅠ have anti-tumor effect and one of the mechanisms is inducing cell apoptosis.