Killing effects of Huaier Granule combined with DC-CIK on nude mice transplanted with colon carcinoma cell line

This study aims to compare the efficacy of different treatments for nude mice transplanted with HT-29 colon carcinoma cell line. BalB/C nude mice were transplanted with HT-29 colon carcinoma cell line and randomly divided into four groups, with 5 mice in each group: blank control group, DC-CIK group, Huaier Granule group, and Huaier Granule group combined with DC-CIK group (combined treatment group). For DC-CIK group and combined treatment group, 1×106 DC-CIK cells were injected via the tail vein 4 days after transplantation. The injection was performed twice weekly for a total of 2 weeks. For Huaier Granule group and combined treatment group, Huaier Granule was administered at the dose of 20 g/60 g, by dissolving 20 g of Huaier granules in 600 ml of pure water. Intragastric administration of 0.2 ml of granules was performed once daily for 3 weeks. For the blank control group, equal volume of normal saline was given. Tumor size and body weight of nude mice were measured every 2 days during the 3-week treatment. The mice were sacrificed at the end of treatment to harvest tumors. Key genes of the signaling pathway were detected by RT-PCR. At the end of treatment, mice in combined treatment group, DC-CIK group and Huaier Granule group remained stable emotionally with normal mobility and water and food intake. However, in the blank control group, the mobility was restricted starting from the third week and the mice were on the verge of dying. The expression of PI3KR1, Akt, Wnt1, CTTNB1, Notch1, Notch2 and Notch3 genes were all downregulated significantly in the combined treatment group compared with DC-CIK group and Huaier Granule group (P<0.05). Therefore, the combined treatment of Huaier Granule combined with DC-CIK achieved the best effect in nude mice transplanted with HT-29 colon carcinoma cell line.