Study on the Effect and Mechanism of Saponins from Panax Japonicus in Inhibiting Cisplatin Resistant Lung Cancer Cells

OBJECTIVE To study the effect of saponins from Panax japonicus on the sensitivity of cisplatin resistant lung cancer cell and further discuss its potential mechanism. METHODS Drug resistance of lung cancer A549 cells was induced by increasing concentration of cisplatin, and then cell viability was determined, the drug sensitivity was determined by SRB colorimetry, apoptosis was detected by Annexin V-FITC/PI double staining assay, Caspase 3 and Caspase 8 levels was measured by ELISA and the expression of related proteins was determined by Western blotting. RESULTS After long-term induction, the tolerance of A549 cells to cisplatin was increased by 14.79 times and was relatively stable. Compared with cisplatin treatment group, the combination of saponins from Panax japonicus and cisplatin significantly increased the sensitivity of A549 cells to cisplatin, increased the intracellular Caspase 3 and Caspase 8 levels and promoted apoptosis. At the same time, the expression of MDR1, P-gp, Bcl-2 and p-Akt was inhibited, and the expression of Bax protein was promoted. CONCLUSION Saponins from Panax japonicus can increase the sensitivity of cisplatin-resistant cell lines to cisplatin and enhance the effect of cisplatin, and the possible mechanism may be through inhibiting the activity of drug-resistant related proteins MDR1, P-gp and Akt.