Effects of Acidic Polysaccharide-Enriched Extracts from Holothuria tubulosa on Two- and Three-Dimensional Invasive...

Area of Science:

• Marine Biology
• Pharmacology
• Biochemistry

Background:

• Marine invertebrates, especially sea cucumbers (Holothurians), are rich sources of bioactive compounds.
• Acidic polysaccharides (APs) from sea cucumbers exhibit potential anticancer properties.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the anticancer effects of two AP fractions (Ht1 and Ht2) from *Holothuria tubulosa* on the MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell line.
• To evaluate the impact of these APs on cell viability, migration, adhesion, morphology, and gene expression.
• To conduct a preliminary assessment of their effects on breast cancer spheroids.

Main Methods:

• Functional assays measuring cell viability, migration, and adhesion on collagen I.
• Analysis of cell morphology and gene expression.
• Preliminary evaluation using three-dimensional breast cancer spheroids.

Main Results:

• Both AP fractions (Ht1 and Ht2) decreased MDA-MB-231 cell viability.
• Ht1 significantly inhibited cell migration and increased collagen I adhesion, with a trend towards epithelial phenotype transformation.
• APs modulated E-cadherin (Ht1) and matrix metalloproteinases 7 and 9 (Ht2) gene expression.
• No significant effects were observed on spheroids, likely due to poor AP penetration.

Conclusions:

• *Holothuria tubulosa*-derived APs demonstrate significant anticancer effects against invasive breast cancer cells.
• These compounds show potential as antineoplastic agents, particularly Ht1 for inhibiting migration and Ht2 for modulating metastasis-related genes.
• Further research is needed for structural characterization and detailed mechanism of action studies.