Qige San Regulates miR-133a/PI3K/Akt Signaling Pathway-mediated Tumor Angiogenesis to Treat Esophageal Cancer
10.13422/j.cnki.syfjx.20252028
- VernacularTitle:启膈散调控miR-133a/PI3K/Akt信号通路介导的肿瘤血管生成治疗食管癌的机制
- Author:
Yuhui HAN
1
;
Xiaoling GAO
1
;
Dandan LI
1
;
Xianghua LIU
1
;
Yumeng WEI
1
;
Yulong CHEN
1
Author Information
1. Henan University of Chinese Medicine， Zhengzhou 450046， China
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
Qige San;
esophageal cancer;
miR-133a/ phosphoinositide 3-kinase （PI3K）/protein kinase B （Akt） signaling pathway;
endothelial cells;
angiogenesis
- From:
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae
2026;32(23):12-23
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
ObjectiveTo observe the mechanism through which Qige San inhibits tumor angiogenesis in esophageal cancer （EC） by regulating the microRNA-133a （miR-133a）/phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase （PI3K）/protein kinase B （Akt） signaling pathway. MethodsCell experiments were conducted by transfecting miR-133a mimics through liposomes and utilizing PI3K/Akt signaling pathway inhibitors. The effects of 60 mg·L-1 and 100 mg·L-1 Qige San on inflammatory factor secretion in the supernatant of EC9706 cells （esophageal cancer cells） were observed. EC9706 cell supernatants were then extracted and used as conditioned media to treat human umbilical vein endothelial cells （HUVECs）. The effects of the conditioned media on the proliferation， migration， tube formation， and apoptosis of HUVECs were examined. Animal experiments involved establishing a subcutaneous tumor model in nude mice with EC9706 cells. After grouping and administration， tumor volumes were measured regularly. At the end of the experiment， tumors were harvested， and histopathological changes were observed under a microscope after hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining. Real-time polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR） was adopted to measure miR-133a expression in the tumor tissue of each group， while Western blotting was employed to analyze the expression of key signaling molecules， such as phosphorylated Akt （p-Akt）， as well as endothelial cell markers， cluster of differentiation 31 （CD31） and cluster of differentiation 34 （CD34）， in the tumor tissue. ResultsCell experiments showed that compared with the blank group， the supernatant of EC9706 cells promoted tube formation of HUVECs （P<0.05）. Both low and high doses of Qige San inhibited tube formation of HUVECs （P<0.05）. All doses of Qige San， PI3K/Akt inhibitor， and the combination reduced the content of interleukin-6 （IL-6） （P<0.05）， while high-dose Qige San， inhibitor， and combination all reduced the content of interleukin-8 （IL-8） （P<0.05）. Compared with the EC9706 blank supernatant group， Qige San-conditioned medium inhibited the proliferation of HUVECs （P<0.05）. Qige San， the inhibitor， and the combination all inhibited the migration and tube formation （P<0.05） and increased the late apoptosis and total apoptosis rates of HUVECs （P<0.05）. In addition， the low-dose combination induced early apoptosis of EC9706 cells （P<0.05）. Compared with the blank supernatant group， the miR-133a mimic combined with Qige San synergistically reduced IL-6/IL-8 （P<0.05）， and enhanced the inhibition on proliferation， migration， and tube formation of HUVECs （P<0.05）. Animal experimental results showed that compared with the model group， both Qige San and cisplatin inhibited the growth of xenograft tumors in nude mice （P<0.05）， promoted tumor cell necrosis， and reduced capillary formation. High-dose Qige San upregulated miR-133a expression （P<0.05）. Moreover， compared with the model group， cisplatin， Qige San， and the combination all downregulated the expression of p-Akt， CD31， and CD34 （P<0.05）. ConclusionQige San upregulates miR-133a expression， inhibit PI3K/Akt signaling pathway activity， and improve the tumor inflammatory microenvironment to suppress the growth and tumor angiogenesis of HUVECs， thereby inhibiting esophageal cancer.
