Open Access

ARTICLE

Emodin Induces Apoptosis of Colon Cancer Cells via Induction of Autophagy in a ROS-Dependent Manner

Yuanyuan Wang^*1, Qin Luo^*1, Xianlu He^†1, He Wei^*, Ting Wang^*, Jichun Shao^‡, Xinni Jiang^*

* Department of Biomedical Sciences, Chengdu Medical College, Chengdu, Sichuan, P.R. China
† Department of General Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College (China National Nuclear Corporation 416 Hospital), Chengdu, Sichuan, P.R. China
‡ Department of Urology, Second Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College (China National Nuclear Corporation 416 Hospital), Chengdu, Sichuan, P.R. China
1 These authors provided equal contribution to this work.

Oncology Research 2018, 26(6), 889-899. https://doi.org/10.3727/096504017X15009419625178

Abstract

Recent studies revealed that emodin extracted from Chinese herbs exhibits an anticancer effect on different cancer types, including colon cancer. However, the mechanism is not well understood. In our study, we confirmed that emodin treatment inhibited cell viability and induced apoptosis in colon cancer cells. Further experiments found that emodin was also able to induce autophagy, which is indispensible for apoptosis induced by emodin. More interestingly, emodin treatment also results in mitochondrial dysfunction and ROS accumulation in colon cancer cells. Finally, we stressed that ROS accumulation is essential for autophagy and apoptosis induced by emodin. In conclusion, emodin induces apoptosis in colon cancer cells through induction of autophagy, during which ROS generation is of the essence. Our findings improve understanding of emodin’s effect on colon cancer suppression and provide a new theoretical basis for colon cancer therapy.

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