Frankincense, pine needle and geranium essential oils suppress tumor progression through the regulation of the 
AMPK/mTOR pathway in breast cancer

Ren,Peng; Ren,Xiang; Cheng,Lei; Xu,Lixin

doi:10.3892/or.2017.6067

Frankincense, pine needle and geranium essential oils suppress tumor progression through the regulation of the AMPK/mTOR pathway in breast cancer

Authors:
- Peng Ren
- Xiang Ren
- Lei Cheng
- Lixin Xu
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Affiliations: The First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, Liaoning 116044, P.R. China, College of Stomatology, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, Liaoning 116044, P.R. China
Published online on: November 1, 2017 https://doi.org/10.3892/or.2017.6067
Pages: 129-137
Copyright: © Ren et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

BC (BC), as the most common malignancy in women worldwide, is associated with high morbidity and mortality. However, chemoresistance and toxicity are the main causes that limit the success of treatment in aggressive BC cases. Thus, there is a vital need to identify and develop novel therapeutic agents. Frankincense, pine needle and geranium essential oils have been reported to play critical biological activities in cancer. However, to the best of our knowledge whether frankincense, pine needle and geranium essential oils have any effect on the progression of BC in MCF-7 cells remains unclear. In the present study, we assessed the possible effects of frankincense, pine needle and geranium essential oils on cell viability, proliferation, migration and invasion as well as the possible mechanisms. MCF-7 cells were treated with oils, and associations with BC were investigated. In the present study, we clearly revealed that frankincense, pine needle and geranium essential oils suppressed cell viability, proliferation, migration and invasion in human BC MCF-7 cells. Further data demonstrated that frankincense, pine needle and geranium essential oils induced apoptosis, but did not affect cell cycle progression. Consistent with the in vitro activities, frankincense essential oil was effective in inhibiting tumor growth and inducing tumor cell apoptosis in a human BC mouse model. In addition, these 3 essential oils modulated the activity of the AMPK/mTOR signaling pathway. In conclusion, the present study indicated that frankincense, pine needle and geranium essential oils were involved in the progression of BC cells possibly through the AMPK/mTOR pathway.

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