fucoxanthin and Neuroblastoma

We have reported that fucoxanthin, a natural carotenoid, inhibited the growth of human neuroblastoma GOTO cells. In the present study, we show that a metabolite of fucoxanthin, halocynthiaxanthin, which is isolated from sea squirt Halocynthia roretzi, has a more potent inhibitory effect. Halocynthiaxanthin (5 micrograms/ml) caused complete suppression of GOTO cell proliferation, whereas fucoxanthin reduced the growth rate by only 88.8% compared with the control, at day 2 after the drug treatment. Furthermore, halocynthiaxanthin also inhibited the growth of other human malignant tumor cells. Thus halocynthiaxanthin seems to be a promising anti-neoplastic agent.

Topics: Antineoplastic Agents; Carotenoids; Cell Division; Colonic Neoplasms; DNA, Neoplasm; Food; Gene Expression; Genes, myc; HeLa Cells; Humans; Kinetics; Neoplasm Proteins; Neuroblastoma; Pancreatic Neoplasms; RNA, Neoplasm; Stomach Neoplasms; Tumor Cells, Cultured; Xanthophylls

Fucoxanthin, a natural carotenoid prepared from brown algae, inhibited the growth of GOTO cells, a human neuroblastoma cell line. Fucoxanthin at 10 micrograms/ml reduced the growth rate of GOTO cells to 38% of the control at day 3 after drug treatment. Flowcytometric analysis revealed that fucoxanthin caused the arrest in the G0-G1 phase of cell cycle. Expression of N-myc gene was proved to be decreased by fucoxanthin as early as 4 h after treatment at 10 micrograms/ml and that may be important for the mechanism of anti-proliferative action of the carotenoid.

Topics: Carotenoids; Cell Cycle; DNA, Neoplasm; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; Genes, myc; Humans; Neuroblastoma; RNA, Neoplasm; Tumor Cells, Cultured; Xanthophylls