A pinecone water extract induced apoptosis associated with caspase-3 activation in A549, H1264, H1299, and Calu-6 lung cancer cells. - GreenMedInfo Summary
Pinecone of Pinus koraiensis Inducing Apoptosis in Human Lung Cancer Cells by Activating Caspase-3 and its Chemical Constituents.
Chem Biodivers. 2016 Dec 27. Epub 2016 Dec 27. PMID: 28027428
Tae Kyoung Lee
Pinecones from Pinus koraiensis Siebold&Zucc. (Pinaceae), which have historically been treated as an undesired waste by-product in the processing of seeds, have recently been shown to contain ingredients with potent biological activities, such as polyphenols exhibiting anti-tumor activity. With this study, we seek to broaden our understanding of anti-tumor compounds contained in these pinecones beyond just polyphenols. We found that the water extract of P. koraiensis pinecones exhibits significant anti-cancer activity, with IC50 values ranging from 0.62 to 1.73 mg/mL in four human lung cancer cell lines, A549, H1264, H1299, and Calu-6, irrespective of their p53 status. We also demonstrate that pinecone water extract induces apoptosis associated with caspase-3 activation in the same cancer cell lines. Chemical investigation of the pinecone water extract revealed eight main components (1-8), and their structures were identified as dehydroabietic acid (1), 15-hydroxy-7-oxodehydroabietic acid (2), 7β,15-dihydroxydehydroabietic acid (3), β-D-glucopyranosyl labda-8(17,13)-diene-(15,16)-lactone-19-oate (4), 7α,15-dihydroxydehydroabietic acid (5), (1S,2S,4R)-(+)-limonene-1,2-diol (6), sobrerol (7), and 4-hydroxy-benzoic acid (8). These findings suggest a novel biological application of P. koraiensis pinecones in combatting human lung cancer, and further identify the major compounds that could contribute to this anti-cancer activity. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.