후박차 유래 Neolignan 성분인 Magnolol의 인체 구강편평상피세포암에 미치는 세포 사멸 효과

The Apoptotic Effect of Magnolol, a ‘Hu-bak’ Tea-Derived Neolignan Compound, on Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Magnolol, a naturally occurring neolignan compound, is known as a medicinal herb for its various pharmacological effects. In spite of its anti-cancer activities against several cancer cells, the anti-cancer effect and cellular and molecular mechanisms of magnolol for oral squamous cell carcinoma have not yet been investigated. In this study, the effect of magnolol on Fadu cells was evaluated and characterized at the molecular level. Magnolol markedly inhibited the proliferation of Fadu cells at 60, 70 and 80 μM. To elucidate the underlying mechanism, a flow cytometry assay was conducted with the double staining method. The results obtained from the FACS analysis indicated that magnolol induced the apoptotic cell death. Also, the increased concentration of magnolol indicated that the proportion of cells at late apoptotic stage was highly increased. Consequently, the protein levels related to apoptosis were measured by western blot and it was found that the magnolol induced apoptosis was associated with an increase of pro-apoptotic protein (Bax) and a decrease of anti- apoptotic protein (Bcl-2). Magnolol also induced the proteolytic activation of caspase-3 and cleaved PARP. These findings provide important insights into the feasibility of using herb tea with magnolol to prevent the occurrence of cancer.