Triticuside A, a dietary flavonoid, inhibits proliferation of human breast cancer cells via inducing apoptosis.

In this study we demonstrated that Triticuside A, one of the flavonoid compounds isolated from wheat bran, induced apoptosis and inhibited proliferation of human breast cancer cells. Triticuside A inhibited the proliferation of human breast cancer cells (MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231) in a dose-dependent manner but barely showed cytotoxicity to the normal human fibroblasts. Triticuside A-induced apoptosis was accompanied by a significant decrease of Mcl-1 and Bcl-2 proteins and by an increase of cleavage of caspases-3, -7, -9, and PARP. Triticuside A also suppressed the level of phospho-Akt and its downstream targets, mTOR and P70 S6 kinase. LY294002, a specific inhibitor of PI3K, significantly enhanced the Triticuside A-induced apoptosis. Moreover LY294002 not only downregulated the level of phospho-Akt but also enhanced the inhibition of Mcl-1 expression when combined with Triticuside A. Our results demonstrate for the first time the specific apoptogenic activity of Triticuside A in tumor cells and involvement of the mitochondrial apoptosis pathway and Akt/mTOR signaling pathway. Thus, Triticuside A may be a potentially useful wheat bran component that can be used for prevention or treatment of breast cancer.