Ginsenoside impedes proliferation and induces apoptosis of human osteosarcoma cells by down-regulating β-catenin.

Background: Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most commonly occurred primary bone malignancy with high incident rates among children and adolescents. In pharmacologic treatment, the drug ginsenoside has been shown to exert anticancer effects on several malignant diseases. The purpose of this research was to investigate the effect of ginsenoside on the apoptosis and proliferation of human OS MG-63 and Saos-2 cells by regulating the expression of β-catenin.

Methods: Human OS MG-63 and Saos-2 cells were assigned into control group, and four groups with treatment by varying concentrations (12.5 μg/mL, 25 μg/mL, 50 μg/mL and 100 μg/mL) of ginsenoside, respectively. Cell growth after treatment was observed through cell slides. The proliferation rate of MG-63 and Saos-2 cells in each group was detected by CCK-8. After cell transfection at 48 h, cell cycle and cell apoptosis were detected by FITC-Annexin V staining and flow cytometry. The protein and mRNA expressions of β-catenin, Cyclin D1, Bcl-2, Bax and cleaved caspase-3 were detected by RT-qPCR and western blot analysis.

Results: With increased exposure and concentration of ginsenoside, the cell density, total cell numbers and the absorbance of MG-63 and Saos-2 cells gradually decreased. FITC-Annexin V and FITC-Annexin V/PI staining demonstrated that the cell proportion at S phase decreased, whereas the total apoptotic rate of MG-63 and Saos-2 cells was increased. Furthermore, RT-qPCR and western blot analysis highlighted a gradual decrease in protein and mRNA expressions of β-catenin, Bcl-2 and Cyclin D1, while an elevation in those of Bax and cleaved caspase-3.

Conclusion: The results of this study demonstrate that ginsenoside inhibits proliferation and promotes apoptosis of human OS MG-63 and Saos-2 cells by reducing the expressions of β-catenin, Bcl-2 and Cyclin D1 and increasing the expression of Bax and cleaved caspase-3.