West Asia Organization for Cancer Prevention (WAOCP), APOCP's West Asia Chapter. Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 1513-7368 20 7 2019 07 01 Tumor Cell Death via Apoptosis and Improvement of Activated Lymphocyte Cytokine Secretion by Extracts from Euphorbia Hebecarpa and Euphorbia Petiolata 1979 1988 88660 10.31557/APJCP.2019.20.7.1979 EN Zahra Amirghofran Department of Immunology, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran. Autoimmune Diseases Research Center, and Medicinal and Natural Products Chemistry Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran. Narjes Shekofteh Department of Immunology, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran. Mehri Ghafourian Department of Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran. Infectious and Tropical Diseases Research Center, Health Research Institute, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran. Neda Khosravi Department of Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran. Kurosh Kalantar Department of Immunology, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran. Saeed Malek-Hosseini Department of Immunology, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran. Journal Article 2017 10 31 Background: Immunomodulatory materials from natural herbs and the characterization of their immune enhancement<br />effects may have tremendous potential as cancer treatment. The aim of the present study was to investigate the<br />apoptosis-inducing activities of Euphorbia hebecarpa Boiss and Euphorbia petiolata Banks & Sol. plant extracts and<br />their effects on cytokine secretion by lymphocytes. Materials and Methods: We assessed the apoptosis-inducing<br />effect of the plants’ hexane extracts on previously determined sensitive cell lines (HeLa for E. hebecarpa and K562<br />for E. petiolata) by flow cytometry and measurement of caspase 3 activation. The apoptosis-related gene expressions<br />were examined by real-time PCR. The effects of the extracts on lymphocyte proliferation and cytokine secretion were<br />examined. Results: Flow cytometry analysis showed that the inhibitory effect of the extracts on tumor cell growth<br />was due to cell apoptosis. The plant extracts at the 100 μg/ml dose induced apoptosis in HeLa (98.5 ± 0.1%) and K562<br />(57.7 ± 1.9%) cells. The extracts increased caspase 3 activation (≈2-fold>control). Real-time PCR showed Fas and Bax<br />gene upregulation and Bcl-2 downregulation, which resulted in an increased Bax/Bcl-2 expression ratio. The extracts<br />increased lymphocyte proliferation and increased levels of IFN-γ production in the presence and absence of mitogen<br />(p < 0.05). They significantly increased IL-4 and decreased IL-10 secretion by mitogen-stimulated lymphocytes.<br />E. hebecarpa also increased IL-17 release. Conclusion: These results have shown that both extracts possess antitumor<br />activity by inducing apoptosis, possibly through both intrinsic and extrinsic pathways. In addition, they induced secretion<br />of different T helper subset related cytokines that are effective in the immune response against cancer. https://journal.waocp.org/article_88660_23ac78a04a244a1ece21bb7c329aeb32.pdf