Extracts of centipede Scolopendra subspinipes mutilans induce cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in A375 human melanoma cells

Extracts from the centipede Scolopendra genus, have been used in traditional medicine for the treatment of various diseases and have been found to exhibit anticancer activity in tumor cells. To investigate the potential and associated antitumor mechanism of alcohol extracts of the centipede Scolopendra subspinipes mutilans (AECS), cell viability, cell cycle and cell apoptosis were studied and the results revealed that AECS inhibits A375 cell proliferation in a dose- and time-dependent manner. In addition, AECS was found to arrest the cell cycle of A375 cells at the S phase, which was accompanied by a marked increase in the protein levels of cyclin E and a decrease in the protein levels of cyclin D1. In a cell culture system, AECS markedly induced the apoptosis of A375 cells, which was closely associated with the effects on the Bcl-2 family, whereby decreased Bcl-2 and increased Bak, Bax and Bad expression levels were observed. The underlying mechanism of AECS inhibiting A375 cell proliferation was associated with the induction of cell cycle arrest and apoptosis, indicating that AECS may present as a potential therapeutic agent for administration in human melanoma cancer intervention.