Britannin inhibits cell proliferation, migration and glycolysis by downregulating KLF5 in lung cancer

Lung cancer is a harmful type of malignancy and the leading cause of cancer-associated mortality. It is therefore imperative to develop novel drugs effective for treating this cancer. The Traditional Chinese Medicine compound Britannin has been previously reported to inhibit the development of certain cancers, such as pancreatic, breast and liver cancer. Moreover, Kruppel-like factor 5 (KLF5) has been identified an on oncogene in lung cancer. In the present study, the possible regulatory effects and underlying mechanism of Britannin in lung cancer were investigated. A549 and 16HBE cells were treated with different concentrations of Britannin. Subsequently, Cell counting kit-8, EdU staining and colony formation assays were used to detect the proliferative ability of these cells. Cell migration was detected by wound healing and Transwell assays, respectively. XF96 extracellular flux analyzer was used to analyze the extent of extracellular acidification and oxygen consumption rate in cells, whereas assay kits were used to detect glucose and lactic acid levels in the cell supernatant. The targeting effect between Britannin and the KLF5 protein was investigated using molecular docking technology. The protein expression levels of KLF5 in cells challenged with Britannin was detected by western blotting. Finally, overexpression of KLF5 in A549 cells was performed before cell proliferation, migration and the glycolysis rate were measured to explore the regulatory effects of Britannin. Britannin was found to inhibit the proliferation, migration and glycolysis of lung cancer cells, during which the protein expression levels of KLF5 were decreased. This suggests that Britannin regulated the expression of KLF5 in A549 cells. Overexpression of KLF5 reversed the inhibitory effects of Britannin on the proliferation, migration and glycolysis in lung cancer cells. In conclusion, these results suggest that Britannin can inhibit cell proliferation, migration and glycolysis by downregulating KLF5 expression in lung cancer cells.