Study of novel ginsenoside metabolites targeting HSP70 as anti-prostate cancer drugs

Ginsenoside 20 (R)-25-methoxy-dammarane-3 β, twelve β, 20 triol (AD-1) is a promising new drug for the treatment of prostate cancer, but its bioavailability is low. This study investigated the effects of the main metabolites PD and M6 of AD-1 on prostate cancer cell PC3. The in vitro experimental results showed that the IC50 values of PC3 cells treated with PD and M6 were 65.61 and 11.72, respectively. Both PD and M6 inhibited the migration of PC3 cells, and the cell cycle was blocked in the G1 phase. The apoptosis rates of cells following M6 treatment at concentrations of 7.5, 15, and 30 μM were 13.4 %, 17.5 %, and 41.4 %, respectively, which stimulated the expression of apoptosis protein and significantly increased intracellular ROS levels. In xenograft models, PD and M6 have been reported to significantly inhibit tumor growth. We used a genome-wide mRNA expression profile to study the effects of PD and M6 on gene expression in PC3 cancer cells. PD and M6 induced downregulation of HSP70 subtypes HSPA1A and HSPA1B. RT-PCR confirmed that the significant down-regulation of HSP70 subtype expressions was consistent with the results of Transcriptome analysis. Moreover, M6 significantly downregulated the expression of AR, which was further proved by Western blot analysis. In summary, our research findings provide a scientific basis for interpreting the significant activity of AD-1 in prostate cancer, and for the research and development of PD and M6 as novel HSP70 inhibitors.