Inhibition of β-Catenin Signaling Involved in the Biological Activities of a Lignan E2S Isolated from Carya cathayensis Fruits

Carya cathayensis is a fruit-bearing plant that belongs to the Juglandaceae family and is widely distributed throughout the world. It possesses various important biological activities. We have previously isolated an antitumor compound from the shell of C. cathayensis fruits and named it E2S ((E)-3-[(2S,3R)-2,3-dihydro-2-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-3-hydroxymethyl-7-methoxy-1-benzo[b]furan-5-yl]-2-propenal). In this study, we investigated the antitumor activity of E2S against various human colorectal cancer cell lines (HCT116, HT29, SW480, LoVo). The results showed that E2S could significantly inhibit the growth of cancer cells in a dose-dependent manner, as well as disrupt the progression of the cell cycle. Mechanistic study revealed that E2S could decrease the protein levels of -catenin and its downstream targets (such as c-myc, a key transcriptional target of -catenin) in the cells. In addition, it also significantly suppressed -catenin/TCF transcriptional activity. Taken together, the results suggested that E2S might partially exert an antiproliferative effect on human colorectal cancer cells by targeting-catenin signaling, a finding that might potentially translate into a chemotherapeutic strategy for the treatment of cancer. It might also have implications for cancer prevention strategies.