Combination of Formononetin and Sulforaphane Natural Drug Repress the Proliferation of Cervical Cancer Cells via Impeding PI3K/AKT/mTOR Pathway
Natural substances have been demonstrated to be an unrivalled source of anticancer drugs in the present era of pharmacological development. Plant-based substances, together with their derivatives through analogues, play a significant character in the treatment of cancer by altering the tumor microenvironment and several signaling pathways. In this study, it was investigated whether the natural drugs, formononetin (FN) and sulforaphane (SFN), when combined, assess the efficacy of inhibiting cervical cancer cell proliferation by impeding the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway in HeLa cells. The cells were treated with the combination of FN and SFN (FN + SFN) in various concentrations (0-50 µM) for 24 h and then analyzed for various experiments. The combination of FN + SFN-mediated cytotoxicity was analyzed by MTT assay. DCFH-DA staining was used to assess the ROS measurement, and apoptotic changes were studied by dual (AO/EtBr) staining assays. Protein expressions of cell survival, cell cycle, proliferation, and apoptosis protein were evaluated by flow cytometry and western blotting. Results showed that the cytotoxicity of FN and SFN was determined to be around 23.7 µM and 26.92 µM, respectively. Combining FN and SFN causes considerable cytotoxicity in HeLa cells, with an IC