Figure 1

DHM specifically induces apoptosis in HCC cells but has little effect on normal immortalized liver cells.

(A) DHM induced apoptosis in HepG2 cells in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. (200× magnification) (B) Cell growth was inhibited in 4401 primary cells and HL7702 cells after 24 h of exposure to DHM at various concentrations (200× magnification). (C) The viable cell count of HepG2, HL7702 and 4401 primary cells after treatment with DHM (n = 6, Mean ± SD). (D, E) DHM-induced apoptosis in HepG2, HL7702 and 4401 cells was detected by flow cytometry (Mean ± SD,24 h treatment). (F, G) DHM or cisplatin inhibited the proliferation of HepG2, HL7702 and L02 cells, as assessed by the Edu incorporation assay (Mean ± SD, DHM: 25 μM, cisplatin: 2.5 μg/mL, 12 h treatment). (H–J) The DHM inhibitory rate in HepG2, HL7702 and L02 cells was assessed by MTT assay (Mean ± SD).