Effects of Matrine on Migration, Proliferation and Apoptosis of Rat Hepatic Stellate Cell Induced by PDGF in Vitro

Objective To investigate the effect of matrine on migration, proliferation and apoptosis of hepatic stellate cell (HSC) induced by PDGF in vitro. Methods HSC line was incubated separately with matrine in different concentration of 0.25 and 0.5 mg/ml, cell proliferation was assessed by MTT assay. Apoptosis was tested by TUNEL in situ assay. The migration ability of HSCs was observed with Transwell chamber assay. Results The cell migration rate and absorbance value of the groups with 0.25 mg/ml and 0.5 mg/ml matrine were significantly lower than those of the control group, as well as in PDGF groups. But there was no difference in rates of cell apoptosis among three groups. Conclusion Matrine can inhibit HSC migration, proliferation and induce apoptosis of HSC, which might be one of the mechanisms that matrine counteracts against liver fibrosis. But there was no effect of matrine on HSC apoptosis induced by PDGF.