Triptolide Inhibits Proliferation and Induces Apoptosis of Human Melanoma A375 Cells

Triptolide, a diterpenoid obtained from Tripteryglum wilfordii Hook.f, has attracted interest for its antitumoractivities against human tumor cell lines in recent years. This report focuses on anti-proliferative andpro-apoptotic activities in human melanoma A375 cells assessed by CCK8 assay, Hoechst 33258 staining andflow cytometry. In addition, triptolide-induced arrest in the S phase was also observed. Caspase assays showedthe apoptosis induced by triptolide was caspase-dependent and probably through intrinsic apoptotic pathways.Furthermore, expression of NF-kB (p65) and its downstream factors such as Bcl-2, Bcl-XL was down-regulated.Taken together, the data indicate that triptolide inhibits A375 cells proliferation and induces apoptosis by acaspase-dependent pathway and through a NF-kB-mediated mechanism.