Honokiol inhibits epithelial-mesenchymal transition in breast cancer cells by targeting signal transducer and activator of transcription 3/Zeb1/E-cadherin axis.

ABSTRACT: Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), a critical step in the acquisition of metastatic state, is an attractive target for therapeutic interventions directed against tumor metastasis. Honokiol (HNK) is a natural phenolic compound isolated from an extract of seed cones from Magnolia grandiflora. Recent studies from our lab show that HNK impedes breast carcinogenesis. Here, we provide molecular evidence that HNK inhibits EMT in breast cancer cells resulting in significant downregulation of mesenchymal marker proteins and concurrent upregulation of epithelial markers. Experimental EMT induced by exposure to TGFβ and TNFα in spontaneously immortalized nontumorigenic human mammary epithelial cells is also completely reversed by HNK as evidenced by morphological as well as molecular changes. I

SUBMITTER: Avtanski DB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4009450 | biostudies-literature | 2014 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature