The Effects of Cytotoxicity and Induction of Apoptosis by Arsenic Trioxide on Hepatoma Cell Line HLE

Objective To study the effects of cytotoxicity and induction of apoptosis by arsenic trioxide(As 2O 3) on hepatoma cell line HLE.Methods The effect of cytotoxicity by As 2O 3 on hepatoma cell lines HLE was determined by MTT assay, apoptosis and morphologic changes of HLE induced by As 2O 3 by electronic microscope and flow cytometry. The intracellular Ca 2+ concentration was detected by confcal Laser scanning microscope(CLSM).Results As 2O 3 could induced apoptosis in hepatoma cell lines remarkably, HLE cells exhibited typical morphologic features of apoptosis. The intracellular Ca 2+ concentration reached peak 48 hours after treatment with high concentration of As 2O 3, and 96 hours after treatment with low concentration of As 2O 3. Conclusions As 2O 3 exhibited significantly cytotoxicity and induction of apoptosis on hepatoma cell lines HLE.As 2O 3 might be promising in the treatment of hepatic carcinoma, and be worthy to be further studied.