Dracorhodin perchlorate

Eur J Pharmacol. 2014 Apr 5;728:82-92.

Dracorhodin perchlorate induces apoptosis in primary fibroblasts from human skin hypertrophic scars via participation of caspase-3.[Pubmed: 24525335]

Hypertrophic scar (HS) is an abnormally proliferative disorder characterized by excessive proliferation of fibroblasts and redundant deposition of extracellular matrix. An unbalance between fibroblast proliferation and apoptosis has been assumed to play an important role in HS formation.
METHODS AND RESULTS:
To explore the regulative effects of Dracorhodin perchlorate (Dp), one of the derivants of dracorhodin that is a major constituent in the traditional Chinese medicine, on primary fibroblasts from human skin hypertrophic scars, 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and flow cytometric analysis were respectively used to evaluate the inhibitory effect of Dp on the cells and to determine cell cycle distribution. Additionally, cellular apoptosis was separately detected with Hoechst 33258 staining and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT)-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) assay. The expression levels of caspase-3 mRNA and protein were respectively measured with reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and western blot analysis, and caspase-3 activity were determined using a colorimetric assay kit. The results showed that Dp significantly inhibited cell growth, and induced apoptosis in fibroblasts in a dose-and time-dependent manner, arresting cell cycle at G1 phase. Additionally, Dp slightly up-regulated caspase-3 mRNA expression in fibroblasts, but significantly down-regulated caspase-3 protein expression in a dose- and time-dependent manner, and concurrently elevated caspase-3 activity.
CONCLUSIONS:
Taken together, these data indicated that Dp could effectively inhibit cell proliferation, and induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in fibroblasts, at least partially via modulation of caspase-3 expression and its activity, which suggests that Dp is an effective and potential candidate to develop for HS treatment.

Zhongguo Zhong Yao Za Zhi. 2010 Aug;35(15):1996-2000.

Dracorhodin perchlorate inhibit high glucose induce serum and glucocorticoid induced protein kinase 1 and fibronectin expression in human mesangial cells.[Pubmed: 20931854]

To investigate the effect of Dracorhodin perchlorate (DP) on inhibiting high glucose-induced serum and glucocorticoid induced protein kinase 1 (SGK1) and fibronectin (FN) expression in human mesangial cells (HMC), and its mechanism of prevention and treatment on renal fibrosis in diabetic nephropathy (DN) .
METHODS AND RESULTS:
The HMC were divided into normal glucose group (NG group, 5.5 mmol x L(-1) D-glucose), normal glucose +low DP group (NG + LDP group, 5.5 mmol x L(-1) D-glucose +7.5 micromol x L(-1) DP), normal glucose +high DP group (NG + HDP group, 5.5 mmol x L(-1) D-glucose + 15 micromol x L(-1) DP), high glucose group (HG group,25 mmol x L(-1) D-glucose), high glucose +low DP group (HG + LDP group, 25 mmol x L(-1) D-glucose + 7.5 micromol x L(-1) DP)and high glucose +high DP group (HG +HDP group, 25 mmol x L(-1) D-glucose + 15 micromol x L(-1) DP). Each group was examined at 24 hours. The levels of SGK1 and FN mRNA was detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR,and the expression of SGK1 and FN protein was detected by Western blot or indirect immunofluorescence. A basal level of SGK1 and FN in HMC were detected in NG group, and the level of SGK1 and FN mRNA and protein were not evidently different compared to that of NG group adding 7.5 micromol x L(-1) DP for 24 hours. On the other hand, the levels of SGK1 and FN mRNA and protein were obviously decreased by adding 15 micromol x L(-1) DP for 24 hours. Compared to NG group, the levels of SGK1 and FN mRNA and protein were increased in HG group after stimulating for 24 hours (P < 0.01). Compared to HG group, the level of SGK1 and FN mRNA and protein were evidently reduced in HG + LDP and HG + HDP groups by adding 7.5 micromol x L(-1) DP and 15 micromol x L(-1) DP for 24 hours (P < 0.01).
CONCLUSIONS:
Dracorhodin perchlorate can inhibit high glucose-induced serum and glucocorticoid induced protein kinase 1 (SGK1) and fibronectin(FN) expression in human mesangial cells, and this may be part of the mechanism of preventing and treating renal fibrosis of DN.

J Huazhong Univ Sci Technolog Med Sci. 2011 Apr;31(2):215-9.

Dracorhodin perchlorate suppresses proliferation and induces apoptosis in human prostate cancer cell line PC-3.[Pubmed: 21505988]

METHODS AND RESULTS:
The growth inhibition and pro-apoptosis effects of Dracorhodin perchlorate on human prostate cancer PC-3 cell line were examined. After administration of 10-80 μmol/L Dracorhodin perchlorate for 12-48 h, cell viability of PC-3 cells was measured by MTT colorimetry. Cell proliferation ability was detected by colony formation assay. Cellular apoptosis was inspected by acridine orange-ethidium bromide fluorescent staining, Hoechst 33258 fluorescent staining, and flow cytometry (FCM) with annexin V-FITC/propidium iodide dual staining. The results showed that Dracorhodin perchlorate inhibited the growth of PC-3 in a dose- and time-dependent manner. IC50 of Dracorhodin perchlorate on PC-3 cells at 24 h was 40.18 μmol/L. Cell clone formation rate was decreased by 86% after treatment with 20 μmol/L of Dracorhodin perchlorate. Some cells presented the characteristic apoptotic changes. The cellular apoptotic rates induced by 10-40 μmol/L Dracorhodin perchlorate for 24 h were 8.43% to 47.71% respectively.
CONCLUSIONS:
It was concluded that Dracorhodin perchlorate significantly inhibited the growth of PC-3 cells by suppressing proliferation and inducing apoptosis of the cells.

Apoptosis. 2012 Oct;17(10):1104-19.

Dracorhodin perchlorate inhibits PI3K/Akt and NF-κB activation, up-regulates the expression of p53, and enhances apoptosis.[Pubmed: 22711363]

Dracorhodin perchlorate has been recently shown to induce apoptotic cell death in cancer cells. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying these effects are unknown in human gastric tumor cells.
METHODS AND RESULTS:
In this study, effects of Dracorhodin perchlorate on cell viability, cell cycle, and apoptosis were investigated in SGC-7901 cells. The results showed that Dracorhodin perchlorate induced cellular and DNA morphological changes and decreased the viability of SGC-7901 cells. Dracorhodin perchlorate-mediated cell cycle arrest was associated with a marked decrease in protein levels of phosphorylated retinoblastoma and E2F1. Dracorhodin perchlorate-induced apoptosis is mediated via upregulation of p53, inhibiting the activation of PI3K/Akt, and NF-κB, thereby decreasing the expression of the anti-apoptotic proteins, Bcl-2 and Bcl-XL. Interestingly, we also found that Dracorhodin perchlorate significantly suppressed the IGF-1-induced phosphorylation of Akt in the stably expressing EGFP-Akt recombinant CHO-hIR cells and inhibited TNF-induced NF-κB transcriptional activity in the NF-κBp65-EGFP recombinant U2OS cells, indicating that inhibition of PI3K/Akt and NF-κB may provide a molecular basis for the ability of Dracorhodin perchlorate to induce apoptosis. Dracorhodin perchlorate induced up-regulation of p53, thereby resulting in the activation of its downstream targets p21 and Bax following the dissipation of mitochondrial membrane potential and activation of caspase-3 and its substrate, PARP. Moreover, Dracorhodin perchlorate dramatically enhanced the wortmannin- and TNF-induced apoptosis in SGC-7901 cells.
CONCLUSIONS:
These results reveal functional interplay among the PI3K/Akt, p53 and NF-κB pathways that are frequently deregulated in cancer and suggest that their simultaneous targeting by Dracorhodin perchlorate could result in efficacious and selective killing of cancer cells.

Int J Med Sci. 2013 Jul 7;10(9):1149-56.

Dracorhodin perchlorate induced human breast cancer MCF-7 apoptosis through mitochondrial pathways.[Pubmed: 23869191 ]

Dracorhodin perchlorate (DP) was a synthetic analogue of the antimicrobial anthocyanin red pigment dracorhodin. It was reported that DP could induce apoptosis in human prostate cancer, human gastric tumor cells and human melanoma, but the cytotoxic effect of DP on human breast cancer was not investigated. This study would investigate whether DP was a candidate chemical of anti-human breast cancer.
METHODS AND RESULTS:
The MTT assay reflected the number of viable cells through measuring the activity of cellular enzymes. Phase contrast microscopy visualized cell morphology. Fluorescence microscopy detected nuclear fragmentation after Hoechst 33258 staining. Flowcytometric analysis of Annexin V-PI staining and Rodamine 123 staining was used to detect cell apoptosis and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP). Real time PCR detected mRNA level. Western blot examined protein expression. DP dose and time-dependently inhibited the growth of MCF-7 cells. DP inhibited MCF-7 cell growth through apoptosis. DP regulated the expression of Bcl-2 and Bax, which were mitochondrial pathway proteins, to decrease MMP, and DP promoted the transcription of Bax and inhibited Bcl-2. Apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) and cytochrome c which localized in mitochondrial in physiological condition were released into cytoplasm when MMP was decreased. DP activated caspase-9, which was the downstream of mitochondrial pathway. Therefore DP decreased MMP to release AIF and cytochrome c into cytoplasm, further activating caspase 9, lastly led to apoptosis.
CONCLUSIONS:
Therefore DP was a candidate for anti-breast cancer, DP induced apoptosis of MCF-7 through mitochondrial pathway.