Yang X, Sit WH, Chan DK, Wan JM.
Department of Zoology, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfalum Road, Hong Kong, SAR, P.R. China.
Abstract
The polysaccharide peptide (PSP) isolated from the mycelia of Chinese Medicinal fungus Coriolus versicolor has proven
benefits in clinical trials in China but the mechanism of action has not been elucidated. In this study, HL-60 cell line was
used to investigate the anti-proliferation and cell death process of PSP. The cytotoxicity of PSP on normal human
T-lymphocytes was also evaluated. We show that PSP induced apoptosis of human promyelocytic leukemia HL-60 cells
but not of normal human T-lymphocytes. The apoptotic machinery induced by PSP was associated with a decrease in
Bcl-2/Bax ratio, drop in mitochondrial transmembrane potential, cytochrome c release, and activation of caspase-3, -8 and
-9. Activation of the cellular apoptotic program is a current strategy for the treatment of human cancer, and the selectivity
of PSP to induce apoptosis in cancerous and not on normal cells supports its development as a novel anticancer agent.
PMID: 15870943 [PubMed – indexed for MEDLINE]
PubMed
U.S. National Library of Medicine
National Institutes of Health
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