Anti-tumor activities of andrographolide, a diterpene from Andrographis paniculata, by inducing apoptosis and inhibiting VEGF level

Andrographolide (1), a diterpenoid lactone isolated from a traditional herb (Andrographis paniculata), is known to possess potent anti-inflammatory activity. In this study, we investigated the anti-tumor effect of 1 on various cancer cell lines in vitro. It induced apoptosis of prostate cancer (PC-3) cells (the most sensitive cell line among the cell lines screened) via the activation of caspase 3, up-regulation of bax, and down-regulation of bcl-2. Furthermore, its inhibitory activity on the level of vascular endothelial growth factor was also verified by ELISA.