ε-Viniferin and α-viniferin alone or in combination induced apoptosis and necrosis in osteosarcoma and non-small cell lung cancer cells.

This study investigated the effects and molecular mechanisms of ε-viniferin and α-viniferin in non-small cell lung cancer cell line A549, melanoma cell line A2058, and osteosarcoma cell lines HOS and U2OS. Results showed ε-viniferin having antiproliferative effects on HOS, U2OS, and A549 cells. Compared with ε-viniferin at the same concentration, α-viniferin had higher antiproliferative effects on HOS cells, but not the same effect on U2OS and A549 cells. Lower dose combination of α-viniferin and ε-viniferin had more synergistic effects on A549 cells than either drug alone. α-Viniferin induced apoptosis in HOS cells by decreasing expression of phospho-c-Jun-N-terminal kinase 1/2 (p-JNK1/2) and increasing expression of cleaved Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), whereas α-viniferin in combination with ε-viniferin induced apoptosis in A549 cells by decreasing expression of phospho-protein kinase B (p-AKT) and increasing expression of cleaved PARP and cleaved caspase-3. ε-Viniferin and α-viniferin have not been studied using in vivo tumor models for cancer. This research is the first showing that ε-viniferin treatment resulted in significant inhibition of tumor growth in A549-cell xenograft-bearing nude mice compared with the control group. Consequently, ε-viniferin and α-viniferin may prove to be new approaches and effective therapeutic agents for osteosarcoma and lung cancer treatment.