Matrine induces apoptosis in acute myeloid leukemia cells by inhibiting the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway

Matrine has been demonstrated to exert anticancer effects on acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cell lines. However, the mechanisms of matrine in AML remain largely unknown. The present study investigated the anticancer effects and underlying mechanisms of matrine on human AML cells in vitro. THP-1 cell lines were cultured and treated with different doses of matrine (0.4, 0.8, 1.2, 1.6 and 2.0 g/l). The effects of matrine on the cell proliferation were assessed by the Cell Counting Kit-8 assay. The apoptotic effects were evaluated by DAPI and annexin V/propidium iodide staining assays. The effects of the drug on phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt)/ mechanistic target of rapamycin kinase (mTOR) protein expression were studied by western blot analysis. The results of the present study demonstrated that matrine suppressed the viability of THP-1 cells. The anticancer effects were identified to be dose-dependent and the IC50 value was 1.2 g/l in THP-1 cells. Matrine inhibited cell viability and induced cell apoptosis of AML cell lines in a dose- and time-dependent manner. In addition, it was observed that matrine decreased the expression of phosphorylated (p)-PI3K, p-Akt and p-mTOR in a concentration-dependent manner. However, the expression levels of PI3K, Akt and mTOR remained almost unaltered. These findings indicated that matrine may inhibit cell proliferation and induce apoptosis of AML cells and may be a novel effective chemotherapeutic agent against AML.