| خلاصه مقاله | Background and Aim: Pancreatic cancer is known as the most malignant tumor. Surgery and chemotherapy are potentially curative treatments for pancreatic cancer patients
with a low response rate. Recently, a growing interest has been dedicated to natural
products. Sweet apricot kernel exerts a number of pharmacological activities; however,
the anti-cancer effect, related mechanisms and its active compounds were rarely investigated. In this research, we aimed to evaluate the cytotoxic/apoptotic effects of sweet
apricot kernel ethanolic extract (SAEE).
Methods: The extract was prepared by maceration and its chemical composition analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The biological effects of
SAEE on cancerous PANC-1 and 293/KDR normal cells were investigated by MTT assay, DAPI and AnnexinV/PI staining. The expression of pro- and anti-apoptotic genes
was evaluated by Real-time q-PCR analysis.
Results: The SAEE showed selective growth inhibitory activity against PANC-1 cells in a
dose- and time-dependent manner. DAPI staining and flow cytometry revealed nucleus
fragmentation and elevation of apoptotic cells, respectively. Also, a significant decrease
of Bcl-2/Bax ratio and up-regulation of caspase-3 expression indicated the induction
of apoptosis in PANC-1 cells, but not in 293/KDR cells. These results suggest that SAEE
could induce apoptosis in cancer cells via a mitochondrial dependent pathway. Furthermore, GC-MS analysis showed that the SAEE is rich in gamma-sitosterol and gamma-tocopherol.
Conclusion: Our findings suggest that due to the selective impacts of SAEE on PANC1 cells, it could be considered as a promising adjuvant for pancreatic cancer therapy.
Though, the potent anti-cancer effects of main components of SAEE should be further
investigated. |