Combination of shikonin with paclitaxel overcomes multidrug resistance in human ovarian carcinoma cells in a P-gp-independent manner through enhanced ROS generation

Background Shikonin (SKN), a naphthoquinone compound, is isolated from Chinese herbal medicine Lithospermum root and has been studied as an anticancer drug candidate in human tumor models. This study is designed to investigate whether SKN can sensitize the therapeutic effect of paclitaxel (PTX) in drug-resistant human ovarian carcinoma cells.