Document Type : Original Paper

Authors

1 1 Department of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Advanced Science and Technology, Azad University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran

2 2 College of Sport, Health and Engineering, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia

3 3 Physiology Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran

Abstract

In the realm of cancer research, novel approaches complementing conventional treatments are gaining prominence to improve patient outcomes. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), and bacteria, as emerging strategies, hold promise for cancer therapy. Recent studies suggested that the administration of peptides and bacteria may eliminate colorectal cancer (CRC) cells by triggering apoptosis, and autophagy processes, underscoring the potential of these compounds in CRC treatment. Using the human CRC cell line HT-29, we evaluated the combined effects of D-peptide B and Bifidobacterium bifidum lysate on the expression of the microtubule associated protein 1 light chain 3 alpha (MAP1LC3A), referred to as LC3A hereafter, and caspase 3 (CASP3) genes. D-peptide B and B. bifidum lysate were applied to control human embryonic kidney epithelial cell line HEK293 and HT-29 at their respective half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values. We performed total RNA extraction, complementary DNA (cDNA) synthesis, and reverse transcription quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) with gel electrophoresis to examine changes in the gene expression. Tukey's test and GraphPad Prism One-Way ANOVA were used for the statistical study. The combined treatment of D-peptide B and B. bifidum lysate with HT-29 cells resulted in a considerable decrease in the vitality of cancer cells. Furthermore, when HT-29 cells were compared to control cells, the expression of LC3A and CASP3 genes increased. The results point to the possibility of combining D-peptide B with B. bifidum lysate as a supplementary therapy for CRC. Furthermore, these findings may help improve our knowledge of the molecular processes driving apoptosis and autophagy, as well as their potential therapeutic implications in CRC.

Keywords

Main Subjects

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