Abstract: Objective To investigate the inhibition of apoptosis of HepG-2 cells by bacalin in vitro. MethodsHuman hepatocellular carcinoma cells,HepG-2 were cultured with different concentrations of baicalin and the inhibitory rate of cell proliferation was calculated with MTT assay;Morphology changes were detected by Hoechst33258/PI double fluorescence coloration;The apoptosis rate was detected by TUNEL;the Caspase-9,Caspase-3 and Bcl-2 protein expression were detected by Western blot. Results The cell proliferation was inhibited by baicalin at concentration of 25 to 100μg/ml;the inhibitory rate in 48h was 50.63% at 50μg/ml and 77.62% at 75μg/ml,and the inhibitory effect was in the concentration and time-dependent manner;there was a typical apoptosis at 50μg/ml in 48h,showing cell shrinkage and fragmentation of cell nucleus;the caspase-9 and caspase-3 expression increased and Bcl-2 decreased as the concentration of baicalin increased. Conclusion Baicalin can inhibit proliferation of HepG2 cells by inducing apoptosis and the mechanisms might be related to the mitochondrial pathway.

Key words: Hepatoma, HepG2 cells, Baicalin, Apoptosis