Lentinan Regulates Glioma Cell Proliferation and Apoptosis by Activating p53 and Caspases Pathways

Gliomas are highly lethal malignancies that develop in the central nervous system. The primary treatment for gliomas involves surgical resection followed by chemoradiotherapy. However, due to the infiltrative growth nature of gliomas, surgical resection is often incomplete. Moreover, the efficacy of chemotherapeutic drugs is constrained by their ability to cross the blood–brain barrier, and the currently utilized agents can lose effectiveness, particularly with prolonged administration. Lentinan, an active compound in Lentinula edodes, exhibits various pharmacological activities. This study aims to investigate the anti-tumor effects of lentinan on glioma U251 cells. Cell proliferation assays, cell fluorescence staining, scratch healing experiments, and transwell chamber experiments were conducted to assess the anti-tumor activity of lentinan on U251 cells. Additionally, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and Western blot experiments were performed to validate the anti-tumor mechanism of lentinan. The findings revealed that lentinan significantly suppressed the proliferation of U251 cells, induced robust apoptosis, and decreased the cells’ migration and invasion capabilities. Furthermore, lentinan notably influenced the gene and protein expression of P53, Bcl-2, Cyto-c, Bax, Caspases, and MMP-9 in U251 cells. These findings suggest that lentinan may inhibit glioma cells by activating P53 and caspase-related apoptosis pathways.