The inhibition of 20(R)-ginsenoside Rg₃ on the expressions of angiogenesis factors proteins in human lung adenocarcinoma cell line A549 and HUVEC304 cell

Objective: To study the effect of 20(R)-ginsenoside Rg₃ on the expressions of angiogenesis factors proteins (VEGF, bFGF, MMP-2) in human lung adenocarcinoma cell line A549 and HUVEC304 cell. Method: The cell lines of A549 and HUVEC304 were cultured with 20( R)- Rg₃. The gray scale and positive rate of VEGF, bFGF, MMP-2 were detected by immunohistochemistry. The differential expressions of genes were studied by DNA microarray. Result: The positive rate of VEGF protein in A549 cell decreased significantly as compared with the control group (P = 0.03). The gray scales of VEGF, Flt, KDT proteins in both A549 cell lines and HUVEC 304 cell lines decreased (P = 0.05). Gray scale of MMP-2 also decreased in A549 cell lines. The result of differential expressions of genes of A549 cell lines showed that 14 genes were down-regulated and 10 genes were up-regulated. Conclusion: The Chinese materia medica of 20( R)-Rg₃ can inhibit the expression of angiogenesis factors proteins via several target genes in both tumour cell and vascular endothelial cell.