Cordycepin induces apoptosis of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma Hut78 cellsmitochondrial pathway

Objective Cordycepin is the active component ofCordyceps sinensis andCordyceps militaris, belongs to Traditional Chinese Medicine, and has a significant anti-cancer activity. This research aimed to study the roles of cordycepin in inducing apoptosis of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma Hut78 cell line.Methods After treatment with 5 μg/ml cordycepin for 24 hours, the proliferation and apoptosis of Hut78 cells induced by cordycepin were analyzedvia MTT and flow cytometry assay, respectively. qRT-PCR and Western blotting were used to investigate the levels of apoptosis-related proteins.Results Proliferation and apoptosis of Hut78 cells were inhibited by cordycepin in a dose-dependent manner. The expression levels of apoptosis-related proteins including caspase-8, cleaved caspase-3, tBid, Bax, Apaf1, AIF and DR3 receptor were all decreased in the cells stimulated with 5 μg/ml cordycepin for 24 hours compared with those in the control group.Conclusion Cell proliferation and induced apoptosis could be inhibited by cordycepinvia the DR3/mitochondrial signaling pathway.