ObjectiveTo preliminarily confirm the effective anti-lung cancer sites of Momordicae Semen and Epimedii Folium and study their mechanism of action. MethodOn the basis of preliminary research， the extraction method of Momordicae Semen and Epimedii Folium was optimized and the effective parts were screened under the guidance of pharmacological effects. Different ethanol elution and water elution sites of Momordicae Semen and Epimedii Folium were obtained through adsorption and elution with D101 macroporous resin. The methylthiazolyldiphenyl-tetrazolium bromide （MTT） colorimetric assay was used to detect the effects of total drug extracts and different elution sites on the proliferation of various tumor cell lines， and to screen for the optimal elution site and tumor sensitive strains. Flow cytometry was used to detect the effect of the elution sites of Momordicae Semen and Epimedii Folium on intracellular reactive oxygen species （ROS） and apoptosis in A549 cells. Western blot was used to compare the expressions of tumor protein 53 （p53）， Bcl-2-associated X protein （Bax）， cysteinyl aspartate specific proteinase-3 and 9 （Caspase-3 and Caspase-9） proteins in A549 cells. ResultThe inhibitory effect of Momordicae Semen on the proliferation of A549 cells was better than the kernel of Momordicae Semen， with 50% inhibitory concentration （IC₅₀） being （86.83±2.88） mg·L^-1 and （95.10±18.13） mg·L^-1， respectively. The effect of total extracts of Epimedii Folium on A549 anti proliferation IC₅₀ value was （4.71±0.81） mg·L^-1. The IC₅₀ values of the 40%， 60%， and 80% ethanol and anhydrous ethanol eluted macroporous resins of the total extracts of Momordicae Semen and Epimedii Folium inhibiting A549 proliferation were （45.32±4.38）、 （14.95±0.73）、 （17.07±1.76）、 （14.46±2.35）、 （51.7±2.26）、 （12.37±0.67）、 （20.29±0.93）、 and （3.43±0.91） mg·L^-1， respectively. Compared with the normal group， the 1∶1 combination of Momordicae Semen and Epimedii Folium inhibited A549 cell proliferation in a time-dependent and concentration-dependent manner. Compared with the normal group， 50 mg·L^-1 of the combination of Momordicae Semen and Epimedii Folium significantly increased intracellular ROS expression （P<0.01）. Compared with the normal group， 12.5， 25， 50 mg·L^-1 of the combination of Momordicae Semen and Epimedii Folium significantly increased the expression of A549 cell apoptosis （P<0.01）. Compared with the normal group， 25， 50 mg·L^-1 of the combination of Momordicae Semen and Epimedii Folium significantly increased the expression of p53 in A549 cells （P<0.01）. Compared with the normal group， 12.5， 25， 50 mg·L^-1 of the combination of Momordicae Semen and Epimedii Folium significantly increased the expression of Bax （P<0.01）. Compared with the normal group， 50 mg·L^-1 of the combination of Momordicae Semen and Epimedii Folium significantly reduced the expressions of Caspase-3 and Caspase-9 （P<0.01）. ConclusionThe anti-tumor effect of Momordicae Semen is better than that of the kernel of Momordicae Semen. The anti-tumor substances of Momordicae Semen and Epimedii Folium mainly concentrate in the 60% ethanol to anhydrous ethanol elution site. A549 cells are sensitive to the 1∶1 combination of Momordicae Semen and Epimedii Folium， which can effectively inhibit the cell proliferation. The mechanism may be related to increasing the generation of ROS in A549 cells， promoting their apoptosis， increasing the expressions of apoptotic proteins such as p53 and Bax， and reducing the expressions of Caspase-3 and Caspase-9.