Cordyceps militaris Grown on Germinated Soybean Induces G2/M Cell Cycle Arrest through Downregulation of Cyclin B1 and Cdc25c in Human Colon Cancer HT-29 Cells.

Cordyceps militaris (CM) is an insect-borne fungus that has been used in traditional Chinese medicine because of its wide range of pharmacological activities. In this paper, we studied CM grown on germinated soybean (GSC) and investigated the possible mechanisms underlying antiproliferative effect of GSC on HT-29 human colon cancer cells. In comparison with CM extracts and germinated soybean (GS) BuOH extracts, BuOH extracts of GSC showed remarkable inhibitory and antiproliferative effects on HT-29 colon cancer cells. After GSC treatment, HT-29 cells became smaller and irregular in shape. High G2/M phase cell populations were observed in the GSC-treated group. The levels of cyclin B1 and Cdc25 in the GSC-treated group were lower than those in the control group. These findings suggest that GSC BuOH extracts might act as an effective anti-proliferative agent by inducing G2/M cell cycle arrest in colon cancer cells.