Investigation of the apoptotic effects of mesenchymal stem cells on KG-1 leukemic cell line

Background: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are undifferentiated cells with the ability of multi-potency, pluripotency, and self-renewal. MSCs show great promise in cancer therapy due to their unique features. MSC secrete various cytokines with multifunctional properties, although their roles are unclear. Methods: We have investigated the influence of secreted cytokines from MSCs on KG-1 cells as a cell model of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). For this purpose, following the culture and characterization of MSCs, a trans-well system was used for co-culturing MSCs and KG-1. To determine apoptosis induction Ki/Caspase-3 assay was conducted for cultured KG-1 alone and in co-culture with MSCs (10:1) on day 7. In the following step, the protein was isolated from both groups (control and experimental) and western blotting was done for investigating the BAX and BCL-2 proteins expression. Results: It was found that MSCs significantly enhanced caspase-3 activity in KG-1 cells (*P<0.05). Besides, A significant increase in protein expression of BAX was detected, while BCL-2 displayed a dramatic reduction (*P<0.01). Conclusion: As a concluding remark, MSCs have a contributory role in the apoptosis of KG-1 cells that is mediated by Caspase-3, BAX, and BCL2 expression.