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Updated: Apr 19, 2026

Modeling Oral-Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma in 3D Organoids
Published on: December 23, 2022
Induction of apoptosis by eicosapentaenoic acid in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma
Koji Mizoguchi1, Hideyuki Ishiguro2, Masahiro Kimura1
1Gastroenterological Surgery, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Nagoya, Japan.
Background:
Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) suppresses the proliferation of cell lines derived from colon, pancreatic, breast and other cancers. Few reports have described the effect of EPA on esophageal cancer cell lines.
Materials And Methods:
We investigated the effect of EPA on the proliferation of the esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cell lines TE11 and KYSE180 with a WST-1 assay. Apoptosis was evaluated with a DNA fragmentation assay. Levels of apoptosis-related proteins (caspase-3, -7, -9 and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP)) and cleaved caspase-3, -7, -9 and PARP were evaluated by western blot analysis.
Results:
After exposure to EPA for 24 h, KYSE180 and TE11 cell proliferation was suppressed in a dose-dependent manner (p<0.05). In addition, caspase -3, -7, -9 and PARP were activated. EPA (0.1 μM, 1 μM, 10 μM) induced apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner, as detected by the DNA fragmentation assay.
Conclusion:
EPA shows potential as a new treatment for esophageal cancer.
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