Effect of honey in improving breast cancer treatment and gene expression modulation of MMPs and TIMPs in triple-negative breast cancer cells

Abstract

Breast cancer treatment by chemotherapy or radiotherapy is widely used but has serious side-effects. Thus, honey which is a natural substance has been extensively studied for its anticancer properties. However, its mechanism of action remains unclear. The present study evaluated the effect of two varieties of natural honey (Sidr and Wild) on a human breast adenocarcinoma (MDA-MB-231) cell line. The MDA-MB-231 cell lines were treated with Sidr honey (H1) and Wild honey (H2) for 6, 24, or 48 h followed by cell morphology evaluation. Cell viability was examined by MTT assay and gene expression of three tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinase (TIMPs) and two matrix metalloproteinase (MMPs) were measured by real-time PCR. All subgroups exhibited altered morphology with accelerated detachment compared to untreated cells. The MTT assay after 48 h revealed that treatment with H1 and H2, reduced cell viability by 48% and 91% respectively, compared to that of untreated cells. These results suggest that anticancer effect of Sidr and Wild honey corresponds to their ability to modulate gene expression of MMPs and TIMPs in MDA-MB-231 cell lines. Further investigations are required to understand the molecular mechanism of honey as an anticancer agent.