The Effect of Thymoquinone on BEAS-2B Cell Viability and TGF-β1 Release
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Thymoquinone, one of the essential oil in the structure of cumin, is used for alternative therapy for many diseases from past to present. It was shown to have anti-carcinogenic and anti-inflammatory effects, as well as positive effects on fibrosis. However, there is no study on the effect of thymoquinone on cancer and fibrosis mechanism in bronchial epithelium cell line BEAS-2B. In our study, the effect of thymoquinone on cell viability and transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-β1) level, which has an important role in the regulation of many biological processes including cancer and fibrosis-associated signal transduction, was evaluated. BEAS-2B cells were exposed to thymoquinone at 0–80 μmol/L concentrations for 24-, 48- and 72-hour durations. Cell viability was evaluated with 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) test. TGF-β1 level was determined with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method from the collected supernatant. Cell viability was found to be increased at all concentrations and durations (10–80 μmol/L; 24, 48 and 72 h) according to the control group (0 μmol/L; thymoquinone in ethanol) (p < 0.0001). Moreover, thymoquinone was found to increase the level of TGF-β1 only at 80 μmol/L concentration and 24-hour exposure period (0 μmol/L, 53.41 ± 18.44 pgr/ml TGF-β1; 80 μmol/L, 174.5 ± 80.03 pgr/ml TGF-β1). As a result, thymoquinone was found to increase cell proliferation and encourage TGF-β1 release.
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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.18282/amor.v3.i1.170
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