Influence of the 70% methanolic extract from red ginseng on the lysosome of tumor cells and on the cytocidal effect of mitomycin C.

The influence of the 70% methanolic extract (RMe) from Red Ginseng on the lysosome of tumor cells and on the cytocidal effect of mitomycin C (MMC) was investigated. RMe treatment showed an inhibitory effect on the solid form of Ehrlich ascites carcinoma but had no effect on the ascites form. MMC combined with RMe showed stronger antitumor effects, at the same time, the activity of lysosomal enzymes in tumor cells was also increased in comparison with that treated with MMC alone. Furthermore, RMe promoted the uptake of MMC into the tumor cells and enhanced in vitro the cytotoxicity of MMC against the cultured tumor cells. From these results it was concluded that RMe labilized the lysosomes of tumor cells in vivo, and increased the uptake of MMC into the tumor cells, and that the cytocidal effect of MMC was enhanced by concomitant treatment with RMe.