Paeoniflorin suppresses pancreatic cancer cell growth by upregulating HTRA3 expression

Paeoniflorin (PF) is an active monoterpene glycoside extracted from Paeonia lactiflora Pall. PF has exhibited antitumor effects in various cancer types. However, the effects of PF in pancreatic cancer are largely unexplored. Here, we showed that PF suppressed growth of pancreatic cancer cell lines Capan-1 and MIAPaCa-2 and profoundly sensitized these cells to X-ray irradiation. Through microarray analysis, we identified HTRA3, a tumor-suppressor candidate gene, as the most increased gene upon PF treatment in Capan-1 cells. Ectopic expression of HTRA3 led to reduced cell proliferation and increased expression of apoptotic protein Bax, suggesting a tumor suppressive role of HTRA3 in pancreatic cancer cells. Together, our results provide a set group of genetic proofs and biological proofs that PF inhibited pancreatic cancer growth by upregulating HTRA3.