Experimental study on the inhibitory effect of sodium cantharidinate on human hepatoma HepG2 cells.

BACKGROUND [corrected] Cantharidin, and its derivatives can not only inhibit the proliferation of tumor cells, but can also induce tumor cell apoptosis. It shows cantharidin exhibits a wide range of reactivity in anticancer. The objective of this paper was to study the inhibitory effect of sodium cantharidinate on human hepatoma HepG2 cells. MATERIALS AND METHODS MTT assay was used to detect the proliferation of HepG2 cells, and immunohisto-chemical method was used to detect the change in VEGF, protein level, and to determine the inhibitory effect of sodium cantharidinate on human hepatoma HepG2 cells. RESULTS As results, sodium cantharidinate significantly inhibited the growth of HepG2 cells in a time-and dose-dependent manner. CONCLUSION We conclude that sodium cantharidinate has an inhibitory effect on human hepatoma HepG2 cells.