Bcl-2 is not reduced in the death of MCF-7 cells at low genistein concentration

Soy consumption has been associated with a lower incidence of breast cancer in Southeast Asia. Among the phytochemicals in soy, genistein has been suggested to be chemopreventive. Because genistein is an estrogen-receptor (ER) agonist, the chemopreventive mechanism has been attributed to its ability to compete with estrogen for receptor binding. In this study, we used an ER-positive cell line to investigate the effects of different genistein concentrations on the apoptotic response. The threshold concentration at which a significant number of cells underwent apoptosis was titrated to be 25 micromol/L. At or above this concentration, c-jun N-terminus kinase was activated and Bax and Bcl-2 expression were both elevated. The elevated Bcl-2 protein might neutralize the proapoptotic effect of Bax. Therefore, the mechanism of genistein-induced apoptosis at this concentration might rely largely on the stress pathway rather than the pathway mediated by the Bcl-2 family of proteins.