Cancer prevention research 2007; 12(3): 200-203
Published online September 30, 2007
© Korean Society of Cancer Prevention
Eun Young Kim, Bong Gyu Cha1 and Kwang Hyuk Kim
Berberine, an alkaloid initially isolated from Chinese herbal medicine, has antibiotic activities against a variety of organisms including bacteria, viruses, fungi, protozoans, and chlamydia. Furthermore, berberine has shown a number of beneficial effects, including anti-tumor, anti-inflammation, and vasodilatory effects. In this work we have investigated the effects of berberine on cytotoxic activity against cancer cells and life span of tumor-bearing mice. The direct cytotoxicity of berberine or berberine-combined chemotherapeutic agents for mouse lymphoma cells Yac-1 was observed. In addition, the effect of life span extention was counted on Sarcoma 180 mice injected with berberine-combinated mitomycin C. The effect of growth inhibition for cancer cells, Yac-1 was shown in the cytotoxicity test of berberine or berberine-combinated chemotherapeutic agents. The effect of life span extention was observed at Sarcoma 180 mice injected with berberine-combinated mitomysin C. These findings suggest that berberine shows tumor cell growth inhibition and life span extension in Sarcoma 180 mice exposed with berberine- combinated chemotherapeutic agents. These results show the probability of its usefulness for cancer therapy if more research results were accumulated. (Cancer Prev Res 12, 200-203, 2007)
Keywords: Berberine, Yac-1, Cytotoxicity, Sarcoma 180
Won Ki Lee, Kwang Hyuk Kim, Yong Kee Jeong1, and Kun Young Park
Journal of Korean Association of Cancer prevention 1999; 4(1): 34-43Taek Joon Yoon, Jae-Ho Do1 and Sung-Hoon Kim
Journal of Korean Association of Cancer prevention 2000; 5(1): 7-14Sin-Yung Bae, Hae-Lim Lee, Kwang-Hyeon Kim, Chang-Hee Han1,
Young-Man Kim2, Byung-Woo Kim and Hyun-Ju Kwon