Effects of Sodium Butyrate on the Apoptosis of Human Pancreatic Cancer Cell Line BxPC-3

Objective: To explore the effect of sodium butyrate on the cell apoptosis of human pancreatic cancer cell line BxPC-3 and its mechanism.Methods: The proliferating activity of BxPC-3 cells was observed by MTT assay.Flowcytometry was used to assess the apoptosis after sodium butyrate treatment.And TRAP-ELISA was applied to analyze the telomerase activity of human pancreatic cancer cell.In addition,the expressions of telomerase hTERT mRNA and Bcl-2 mRNA were confirmed by RT-PCR technology.Results: A time and dose dependent inhibition was remarkably confirmed in BxPC-3 cells.As compared with that in control group,apoptosis rate of BxPC-3 cells in sodium butyrate group was increased obviously at 72 h(P0.01).The percentage of S phase decreased significantly,while the percentage of G0/G1 phase increased markedly(both P0.05).The activity of telomerase in research group was significantly lower than that in control group(0.96±0.12 vs 4.18±0.34,P0.05).Furthermore,the expression level of hTERT mRNA and bcl-2 mRNA in sodium butyrate group was significantly lower(0.168±0.045 vs 0.685±0.141,0.138±0.034 vs 0.715±0.026,respectively,both P0.01).Conclusion: Sodium butyrate can greatly induce apoptosis ofpancreatic cancer BxPC-3 cell line,and the decline of expression level of hTERT Bcl-2 mRNA might contribute to the procedure of apoptosis.