Effects of matrine on the proliferation and apoptosis of myeloma RPMI 8226 cells

Objective: To investigate the effects of matrine on the proliferation and apoptosis of RPMI 8226 cells in vitro. Methods: RPMI 8226 cells were cultured in vitro, in the presence of different concentrations of matrine. The effect of matrine at different concentrations on the proliferation and apoptotic rate of RPMI 8226 cells was detected by MTT assay and flow cytometry. The mRNA expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) was determined by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) while the expression level of COX-2 protein was evaluated by Western blotting. Results: Matrine inhibits the proliferation and induces apoptosis of RPMI 8226 cells in a timeand concentration-dependent manner. In addition, it induced COX-2 mRNA expression and decreased COX-2 protein expression in RPMI 8226 cells. Conclusion: Matrine can inhibit the proliferation and induce apoptosis of RPMI 8226 cells possibly via the downregulation of COX-2 gene as one of the mechanisms.