Dendrophthoe pentandra is a parasitic plant that has anticancer activity and is used to evaluate the response to treatment with new cancer therapeutic agents. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the combination of Dendrophthoe pentandra extract (DPE) and doxorubicin could reduce intracellular calcium concentration [iCa2+] and survivin levels while increasing the number of apoptotic cells in MCF-7 breast cancer cell lines. MCF-7 cells were cultured and divided into six groups: group1 was treated with vehicle (negative control); group 2 was treated with doxorubicin alone; groups 3-5 were treated with DPE in doses of either 12.5, 25, or 50 µg/ml immediately after administration of doxorubicin, and group 6 was treated with 50 µg/ml of DPE alone. After 24 hours of treatment, we assessed the concentration of iCa2+ , survivin levels and the number of apoptotic cells by flow cytometry. The combination of doxorubicin and DPE significantly reduced the percentage of survivin (P < 0.05) and iCa2+ concentration (P < 0.05); whereas the number of apoptotic cells increased significantly (P < 0.05). Therefore, we concluded that the anti-cancer effect of doxorubicin can be enhanced when combined with DPE.
Key words: apoptosis, intracellular calcium, Dendrophthoe pentandra extract, doxorubicin, survivin.
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