Restoration of the anti-proliferative and anti-migratory effects of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D by silibinin in vitamin D-resistant colon cancer cells

Vandanajay Bhatia, Miriam Falzon

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

27 Scopus citations

Abstract

Colorectal carcinoma (CRC) is the third most common cancer in developed countries. A large fraction of cases are linked to chronic intestinal inflammation, with concomitant increased TNF-α release and elevated Snail1/Snail2 levels. These transcription factors in turn suppress vitamin D receptor (VDR) expression, resulting in loss of responsiveness to the protective anti-proliferative and anti-migratory effects of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25D). Experimental and epidemiologic evidence support the use of natural products to target CRC. Here we show that the flavonolignan silibinin reverses the TNF-α-induced upregulation of Snail1 and Snail2 in the 1,25D-resistant human colon carcinoma cells HT-29. These silibinin effects are accompanied by an increase in VDR levels; Snail1 overexpression reverses these silibinin effects. Silibinin also restores promoter activity from a vitamin D-response element (VDRE) reporter construct. While 1,25D had no significant effect on HT-29 and SW480-R cell proliferation and migration, co-treatment with silibinin restored 1,25D responsiveness. In addition, co-treatment with silibinin plus 1,25D decreased proliferation and migration at doses where silibinin alone had no effect. These findings demonstrate that this combination may present a novel approach to target CRC in conditions of chronic colonic inflammation.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)199-207
Number of pages9
JournalCancer Letters
Volume362
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 1 2015

Keywords

  • Colon cancer
  • Inflammation
  • Snail1
  • Snail2
  • Vitamin D receptor

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Oncology
  • Cancer Research

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Restoration of the anti-proliferative and anti-migratory effects of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D by silibinin in vitamin D-resistant colon cancer cells'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this