Apigenin  (Synonyms: 芹菜素; 4',5,7-Trihydroxyflavone; Apigenol; C.I. Natural Yellow 1)

The effect of Apigenin on the viability of cells is determined by MTT assay. Near-confluent stock cultures of human gastric cancer SGC-7901 cells are harvested with 0.2% EDTA and plated at a density of 2.5×10³/well in 96-well microtiter plates. After an overnight incubation to allow cell attachment, the medium is replaced by fresh medium containing different concentrations (0, 20, 40, and 80 μM) of Apigenin. Control wells receive DMSO (0.2%). Each concentration of Apigenin is repeated in four wells. After incubation for 24 h, one plate is assayed with a microplate reader at the wavelength of 570 nm. Before the assay, MTT (5 mg/mL in PBS) is added to each well and incubated for 4 h, then MTT solution is removed from the wells by aspiration. After careful removal of the medium, 0.1 mL of DMSO is added to each well, and the plate is shaken for 15 min. The data of 7 d are fed into the computer and the growth curve is drawn. The growth inhibition rate (IR) is calculated^[2].

MCE has not independently confirmed the accuracy of these methods. They are for reference only.

Mice^[3]
Sixty healthy Kunming mice (26±2 g) are randomly assigned into two groups: a control group (n=15) and an ADR group (n=45). The ADR group is divided into three subgroups: ADR only without Apigenin (ADR, n=15), low-dose Apigenin (125 mg/kg/day, n=15), and high-dose Apigenin (250 mg/kg/day, n=15). All Apigenin-treated groups are treated daily via gastric gavage for seventeen days with a 125 or 250 mg/kg/day dose. ADR (3 mg/kg/day) is injected intraperitoneally into animals at an interval of 48 h (in total, eight times at a cumulative dose of 24 mg/kg). The mice in the control group receive injections of 0.9% sterile saline. On the 17th day after the first treatment, the mice are sacrificed, and blood samples are collected. A number of hearts are fixed with 2.5% glutaraldehyde fixative for electron microscopy analysis, and the others are stored at -80°C for western blot analysis.

MCE has not independently confirmed the accuracy of these methods. They are for reference only.

• [1]. Si D, et al. Mechanism of CYP2C9 inhibition by flavones and flavonols. Drug Metab Dispos. 2009 Mar;37(3):629-34.  [Content Brief]

  [2]. Wu K, et al. Inhibitory effects of apigenin on the growth of gastric carcinoma SGC-7901 cells. World J Gastroenterol. 2005 Aug 7;11(29):4461-4.  [Content Brief]

  [3]. Yu W, et al. Apigenin Attenuates Adriamycin-Induced Cardiomyocyte Apoptosis via the PI3K/AKT/mTOR Pathway. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2017;2017:2590676.  [Content Brief]