Eppikajutsuto (a Japanese herbal medicine) regulates mTOR and induces apoptosis in oral cancer cells

Abstract

Aim: The effectiveness of Japanese traditional (Kampo) medicine is gradually attracting attention worldwide. It is typically known to be effective against cancer as a supportive therapy, but the antitumor effect of Kampo formulas is not fully established. We therefore evaluated the antitumor effect of eppikajutsuto. Methods: We evaluated the antitumor effect of eppikajutsuto by cell viability assay, western blotting, and apoptotic cell assay using an oral squamous cell carcinoma cell line OSC-19. Results: We found that the administration of eppikajutsuto to OSC-19 in vitro inhibited cell proliferation, induced apoptosis, and suppressed mTOR activation. Conclusions: The results suggested that eppikajutsuto might exhibit antitumor effect against OSC-19 in vitro by suppressing mTOR activation. However, additional studies in vitro and in vivo are required to confirm the antitumor effect of eppikajutsuto.