Introduction: Phenethyl isothiocyanate (PEITC), a component in cruciferous vegetables, can suppress the cell growth in various human cancer cells. Our previous studies revealed that PEITC inhibited in vitro growth of human glioblastoma GBM 8401 cells through inducing apoptosis, inhibiting migration and invasion, altering the gene expressions. Nevertheless there are no reports showing that PEITC inhibits the growth of glioblastoma in vivo, so we investigate the anti-tumor effects of PEITC in a xenograft model of glioblastoma in nude mice in this study.
Methods: GBM 8401 cells were inoculated subcutaneously into the right hind leg of each nude mouse. Mice having one palpable tumor were randomly divided into 3 groups: the control, PEITC-10 and PEITC-20 groups treated with 0.1% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), PEITC 10 and 20 µmole/100 µl PBS daily by oral gavage, respectively. The volumes of palpable tumors were estimated with bioluminescence imaging (BLI). All mice were sacrificed 3 weeks after oral treatment. Tumor weights and total body weights of mice were measured. Caspase-3, and apoptosis associated proteins were assessed by immunohistochemistry.
Results: PEITC reduced tumor weight and volume of GBM 8401 cells in mice significantly, whereas the total body weight of mice was not affected. PEITC affected the levels of caspase-3 and apoptosis associated proteins in GBM 8401 cells, and these effects were in a dose-dependent manner.
Conclusions: The biological properties of PEITC can inhibit the growth of glioblastoma in vivo. These effects provide support for further investigations to determine the potential use of PEITC as an anticancer drug for glioblastoma.
Patient Care: The ectopic xenograft animal model of this study will benefit in the development of clinical trials for human glioblastoma.
Learning Objectives: 1) PEITC can inhibit human brain glioblastoma cells in vivo.
2) New insights into the anti-tumor treatment will be offered by the in vivo study of the active components from the plants for human brain glioblastoma.
3) The ectopic xenograft animal model of this study will be applied for the development in new anti-tumor drugs for human glioblastoma.