Cucurbitacin I inhibits cell migration and invasion and enhances chemosensitivity in colon cancer

Colorectal cancers are the third most common types of cancers worldwide. Surgical resection is unable to eliminate tumors completely due to metastasis. A demand for new chemotherapeutic tools exists. In the present study, we examined the chemopreventive potential of cucurbitacin I, a natural component extracted from plants of the Cucurbitaceae family, in the colon cancer cell line COLO205. We hypothesized that cucurbitacin I would prevent colon cancer cell migration and invasion, and sensitize colon cancer cells to chemotherapy. Our data demonstrated that exposure of the COLO205 cells to cucurbitacin I significantly decreased cell viability. Furthermore our data demonstrated for the first time that in the COLO205 cells, cucurbitacin I could suppress the cell migration and invasion, and harbor chemosensitization activity against colon cancer. The anticancer activity of cucurbitacin I was accomplished by downregulating p-STAT3 and MMP-9 expression. Collectively, our results suggest that cucurbitacin I may be a potent adjuvant chemotherapeutic agent for colon cancer with anti-migration, anti-invasion and chemosensitizing activities.