Oil Palm Phenolics (OPP) Inhibit Pancreatic Cancer Cell Proliferation via Suppression of NF-κB Pathway

Background: Oil palm phenolics (OFF) or Palm Juice (PJ), a water soluble extract from the palm fruit (Elaies guineensis) has been documented to have anti-carcinogenic activities in various cancer types. Materials and Methods: To investigate OFF effects in pancreatic cancer (PaCa) cells, two PaCa cell lines (PANC-I and BxPC-3) were treated with different OFF doses. The anti-proliferative, apoptotic and anti-invasive properties of OFF were evaluated using MTS, cytoplasmic hi stone-DNA fragmentation and matrigel invasive assays, respectively. Results: OFF suppressed PaCa proliferation in a dose-dependent manner. Its anti-invasive effects were validated by decreased expressions of MMP-9 and VEGF. Cell-cycle analysis demonstrated that cells were arrested in the S phase. OFF-induced apoptosis was associated with decrease in survivin and Bcl-XL expressions and increased expression of cleaved caspase-3, caspase-9 and PARP. Conclusion: Overall, our results demonstrate the anti-tumor effects of OFF on PaCa cells, providing initial evidence towards its potential therapeutic use.