Anti-hepatocarcinoma Effects of a Food Additive Chrysin Nanosuspension against Human HepG2 Cells

Hepatocarcinoma, a malignant cancer, threaten human life badly. It is a current issue to seek the effective natural remedy from plant to treat cancer due to the resistance of the advanced hepatocarcinoma to chemotherapy. Chrysin (Chr), a major symbol ingredient in Chinese Propolis, has a wide range of pharmacological properties and is considered to have anti-hepatocarcinoma effects. However its low oral bioavailability restricts its wide application. In this report, Chr-Nanosuspension (Chr-NS) composed of Chr and poloxamer 188 was prepared by high pressure homogenization technique. The in vitro anti-hepatocarcinoma effects of Chr-NS relative to efficacy of bulk Chr were evaluated. The particle size and zeta potential of Chr-NS were 291.1 nm and -28.7 mV, respectively. MTT assay showed that Chr-NS effectively inhibited the proliferation of HepG2 cells and the corresponding IC50 values of Chr-NS and bulk Chr were 1.55 and 3.76 μg/mL. These results suggest that the delivery of Chr-NS is a promising approach for treating tumors.