Inhibitory effects of all-trans-retinoic acid and arsenic trioxide on human hepatocarcinoma cell HepG2 and transplantation tumor

Objective To study the inhibition effects of all-trans-retinoic acid(ATRA) and arsenic trioxide(As2O3) on human hepatocarcinoma cell HepG2 in vitro and in vivo.Methods The inhibition effect of ATRA combined As2O3 on the grouth of cultured HepG2 cells was determined by MTT assay in vitro.The transplant tumor mouse model was used to observe the inhibition effects of ATRA and As2O3 on HepG2 cells in vivo.Results ATRA could inhibit the growth of cultured HepG2 cells in vitro in a dose-dependent manner.The inhibition rate was(40.9±2.3)% at 10 μmol/L of ATRA.The combination of ATRA and As2O3 could obviously enhance the inhibition effects.The inhibition rate was(62.7±2.5)% when 10 μmol/L ATRA was used with 1 μmol/L As2O3.The combination of ATRA and As2O3 also had significant anti-tumor activity in transplant hepatoma mice model.The inhibition rates were 70.75%(weight) and 70.02%(size).Conclusion ATRA and As2O3 have marked inhibition effects on HepG2 cells both in vitro and in vivo.The combination of ATRA and As2O3 has synergistic action and can significantly enhance their inhibition effects.