Background & objective: Accumulating evidence indicates that nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) may reduce the risk of digestive system tumors, their chemopreventive effects appear to be due to inhibition of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2). At present, influence of selective COX-2 inhibitor on proliferation of human gastric cancer cells and mechanism were not very clear. The current study was designed to evaluate the potential role of Nimesulide, a selective COX-2 inhibitor, on the PGE2 level, proliferation and apoptosis of gastric adenocarcinoma cell line SGC7901.
Methods: MTT assay and radioimmunoassay were used to determine the influence of Nimesulide on the proliferation of SGC7901 cells and PGE2 release in the culture supernatant; Transmission electron microscopy and flow cytometry were used to observe the induction of Nimesulide on the apoptosis of SGC7901 cells and influence on the distribution of cell cycle.
Results: Nimesulide inhibited the cells proliferation in a time- and dose-dependent fashion and reduced the release of PGE2, induced apoptosis of the cells in a dose-dependent and non-linear manner and increased the proportion of cells in the G0/G1 phase.
Conclusion: Nimesulide may inhibit the proliferation of gastric adenocarcinoma cells SGC7901 through decreasing PGE2 release, and affecting the distribution of cell cycle and inducing apoptosis. Selective COX-2 inhibitor may be a new way of the chemoprevention and chemotherapy for gastric carcinoma.