Abstract 227: Antitumor activity of glyceollins through induction of apoptosis

Glyceollins, which are synthesized from daidzein in soybean infected with fungi, have been shown to have anti-fungal effects and cancer preventive properties. However, the effects of glyceollins on apoptosis of cancer cell are not well known. We have investigated the antitumor effects of glyceollins on murine hepatoma cell lines. Cell viability was tested with a MTT assay. In Hepa1C1C7, glyceollins markedly reduced cell viability which was due to apoptosis. Glyceollins were observed to induce apoptosis of Hepa1C1C7 cells as evidenced by cell-morphological changes, an early redistribution of plasma membrane phosphatidylserine, increases in membrane leakage (propidium iodide) staining), Annexin-V binding, sub G1 phase in the cell cycle, and DNA laddering. Western blot analysis showed that upon treatment of tumor cells with the glyceollins, cleavage of pro-caspases-3 and significant release of mitochondrial cytochrome c into the cytosol were readily observed. This study demonstrated that glyceollins caused cell death via an apoptotic pathway, which might be exploited for prevention of tumor development. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 227.