Suppression of human breast cancer cells by tectorigenin through downregulation of matrix metalloproteinases and MAPK signaling in vitro

Abstract

Breast cancer is a major life-threatening malignancy and is the second highest cause of mortality. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of tectorigenin (Tec), a Traditional Chinese Medicine, against human breast cancer cells in vitro. MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 human breast cancer cells were treated with various concentrations of Tec. Cell proliferation was evaluated using the Cell Counting kit-8 assay, and apoptosis and the cell cycle were examined by flow cytometry. The migratory and invasive abilities of these cells were detected by Transwell and Matrigel assays, respectively. Metastasis-, apoptosis- and survival-related gene expression levels were measured by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blotting. The results indicated that Tec was able to inhibit the proliferation of MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Furthermore, Tec treatment induced apoptosis and G0/G1-phase arrest, and inhibited cell migration and invasion. Tec treatment decreased the expression of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2, MMP9, BCL-2, phosphorylated-AKT and components of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway, and increased the expression of BCL-2-associated X, cleaved poly [ADP-ribose] polymerase and cleaved caspase-3. In conclusion, Tec treatment suppressed human breast cancer cells through the downregulation of AKT and MAPK signaling and the upregulated expression and/or activity of the caspase family in vitro. Therefore, Tec may be a potential therapeutic drug to treat human breast cancer.