目的：研究中药莪术提取物β-榄香烯对人肝癌HepG2 细胞增殖抑制及诱导凋亡，以及小鼠肝癌H22 荷瘤小鼠凋亡相关蛋白表达的作用。方法:体外培养人肝癌HepG2 细胞，MTT 法检测β-榄香烯对细胞增殖的影响，Annexin V-FITC/PI 双染检测细胞凋亡。通过建立H22 小鼠肝癌荷瘤模型，观察β-榄香烯对荷瘤小鼠肿瘤生长的抑制作用及凋亡相关蛋白的表达。结果：β-榄香烯对HepG2 细胞具有抑制增殖的作用，呈剂量和时间的依赖性；Annexin V-FITC/PI 法检测到早期凋亡细胞。不同实验组对荷瘤小鼠肿瘤生长的抑制作用程度不同，各药物浓度组Caspase-3 蛋白均上调（P<0.05），P65 蛋白均下调。结论：β-榄香烯可有效抑制人肝癌HepG2 细胞的增殖，其抑制癌细胞增殖的途径是通过诱导细胞发生凋亡，并且与上调凋亡相关蛋白Caspase-3、下调NF-κB P65 相关。

This article was aimed to study the inhibition of cell proliferation and induction of apoptosis by β-elemene extract from traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) Rhizoma Zedoariae on human hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2) cells, as well as the effect on expression of apoptosis-related proteins in liver cancer-burdened H22 mice.Human HepG2 cells were cultured in vitro. MTT method was used in the determination of β-elemene on cell proliferation. Apoptosis of cells were detected by the Annexin V-FITC/PI double staining method. Through the establishment of liver cancer-burdened H22 mice model, the inhibition of cell proliferation and induction of apoptosis-related protein expression by β-elemene on tumor-burdened mice were observed. The results showed that β-elemene inhibited HepG2 cell proliferation, which was dose- and time-dependent. Annexin V-FITC/PI method detected early apoptotic cells. Inhibitions of tumor growth on tumor-burdened mice from different groups were different. Inhibition of tumor growth in the high-dose β-elemene group was relatively low, and that of the middle-dose was more obvious. It was concluded that β-elemene can effectively inhibit human HepG2 cells proliferation. The inhibition on proliferation of cancer cells was through the inducing of cell apoptosis. It was also related to the upregulation of apoptosis-related protein Caspase-3 and downregulation of NF-κB P65.

江苏省中医药管理局领军人才培养资助项目（LJ200901）：黄芪多糖及β-榄香烯提高消化系肿瘤细胞免疫原性并增强免疫应答的机制研 究，负责人：沈洪；江苏省中医院院级课题资助项目（Y11004）：通过PI3K/PKB 信号传导途径上调自噬活性进而增强肿瘤抗原提呈能力的 β-榄香烯抗肝癌免疫机制研究，负责人：沈洪，刘亚军。