Naser Jafargholizadeh - Department of Cell & Molecular Biology, School of Biology, College of Science, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
Seyed Jalal Zargar - Department of Cell & Molecular Biology, School of Biology, College of Science, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

Introduction & Aim: Medicinal plants have been a common source of drugs, either in the form of traditional preparations or as pure active principles. Ecballium elaterium, is an herb from cucurbitaceae family that produces cucurbitacins. Cucurbitacins target several signalling pathways and show a range of anti-cancer functions. In this research, we studied the effects of cucurbitacin D purified from E. elaterium fruits on LC-3 gene expression in AGS cell line. Methods: Using quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), the expression of LC-3 gene was quantified in AGS cells 24 hours after treatment with cucurbitacin D. Results Purified cucurbitacin D upregulated LC-3 in AGS cells (p-value <0.05). Conclusion Cucurbitacin D purified from E. elaterium fruits upregulates LC-3 in human gastric cancer cell line AGS. The present work provides new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying cucurbitacin-mediated cell death in gastric cancer.

Cucurbitacin D, Cancer