Polyphenol-rich extract of Salvia chinensis exhibits anticancer activity in different cancer cell lines, and induces cell cycle arrest at the G₀/G₁-phase, apoptosis and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential in pancreatic cancer cells
Authors: Fu-Dong Sun
Xue-Chen Huo
Quan Zhao
Rui-Qian Dong
Journal: Molecular Medicine Reports (2015)
Discipline: CLINICAL MEDICINE
Keywords: Pancreatic cancer; polyphenol enriched extract; Salvia chinensis; anticancer potential; MTT assay
Affiliations: Department of Pharmacy, Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital, Yantai, Shandong 264000, P.R. China., Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital, Yantai, Shandong 264000, P.R. China., Department of Pharmacy, Jinan Maternity and Child Care Hospital, Jinan, Shandong 250001, P.R. China.

Abstract:  Pancreatic cancer (PC) is one of the most aggressive types of human malignancy, which has an overall 5-year survival rate of &lt;2%. PC is the fourth most common cause of cancer‑associated mortality in the western world. At present, there is almost no effective treatment available for the treatment of PC. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the anticancer potential of a polyphenol enriched extract obtained from Salvia chinensis, a Chinese medicinal plant. An MTT assay was used to evaluate the cell viability of five cancer cell lines and one normal cell line. In addition, the effects of the extract on apoptotic induction, cell cycle phase distribution, DNA damage and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (ΛΨm) were evaluated in MiapaCa‑2 human PC cells. The effects of the extract on cell cycle phase distribution and ΛΨm were assessed by flow cytometry, using propidium iodide and rhodamine‑123 DNA‑binding fluorescent dyes, respectively. Fluorescence microscopy, using 4',6‑diamidino‑2‑phenylindole as a staining agent, was performed in order to detect the morphological changes of the MiapaCa‑2 cancer cells and the presence of apoptotic bodies following treatment with the extract. The results of the present study demonstrated that the polyphenol‑rich extract from S. chinensis induced potent cytotoxicity in the MCF‑7 human breast cancer cells, A549 human lung cancer cells, HCT‑116 and COLO 205 human colon cancer cells, and MiapaCa‑2 human PC cells. The Colo 205 and MCF‑7 cancer cell lines were the most susceptible to treatment with the extract, which exhibited increased rate of growth inhibition. Fluorescence microscopy revealed characteristic morphological features of apoptosis and detected the appearance of apoptotic bodies following treatment with the extract in the PC cells. Flow cytometric analysis demonstrated that the extract induced G0/G1 cell cycle arrest in a dose‑dependent manner. In addition, treatment with the extract induced a significant and concentration-dependent reduction in the ΛΨm of the PC cells. 

Retracted: Yes

PubPeer comments:
 Retracted [20 January 2021] . ------------------------------------------- The Royal Society of Chemistry hereby wholly retracts this RSC Advances article due to concerns with the reliability of the data. The images in the article were screened by an image integrity expert who confirmed that some of the western blots images in this paper had been duplicated in another article by a different set of authors. The control bands (GAPDH) in Fig. 1E of this paper are identical to the western blot control bands (GAPDH) presented in Fig. 3A of ref. 1. The authors were asked to provide the raw data for this article but did not respond. Given the significance of the concerns about the validity of the data, and the lack of raw data, the findings presented in this paper are not reliable. The authors have been informed but have not responded to any correspondence regarding the retraction. Signed: Laura Fisher, Executive Editor, RSC Advances Date: 7th January 2021 References H. Yang and S. Wu , RSC Adv., 2018, 8 , 21816 u201421822 RSC . ------------------------------------------------------- Indeed, the WBs are distinctive in style, resembling processionary caterpillars drawn on a periodic textured background. Fig 3D: ![file] I am commenting on this paper (despite its retraction) because the same style is familiar from other papers, not retracted. Here, for instance, Fig 2F from [Li, Liu Fu (2018)] . ![] Fig 3D of [Chen et al (2018)] : ![] Other examples are listed in a Google spreadsheet: https: docs.google.com spreadsheets d 19wUtpXazLg2zKbTpDBuq0smG6-A7VHYifkieoyyuTcQ edit#gid=0 ,