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Hedyotis diffusa Willd. (Rubiaceae) is an important folk herb used to prevent and cure hepatitis and liver cancer in Taiwan. For differentiation of H. diffusa from counterfeits, macroscopic and microscopic characters of H. diffusa, H. corymbosa and H. tenelliflora were examined in this study. According to Trypan blue exclusion assay and Western blot analysis, H. diffusa had a significant inhibition of cell growth and induction of cell apoptosis in COLO 205 (colon cancer), Hep 3B (hepatocellular carcinoma) and H460 (lung cancer) cell lines. This study also used high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to determine the quality control of H. diffusa. The HPLC data showed that ursolic and oleanolic acid are the components of the H. diffusa, consisting of approximately 4.66-4.80% and 1.86-1.96%, respectively. Our study also demonstrated that ursolic acid has significant anti-tumor activity in COLO 205, Hep 3B and H460 cancer cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Alpha B-crystallin (CRYAB) is a protein that functions as a molecular chaperone in preserving the intracellular architecture and cell membrane, and is highly antiapoptotic. Abnormal CRYAB expression is prognostic for oral cancer, but its genomic variations and the association with carcinogenesis have never been studied. Therefore, we hypothesised that CRYAB single nucleotide polymorphisms might be associated with risk of oral cancer and investigated the association of CRYAB A-1215G (rs2228387), C-802G (rs14133), and intron2 (rs2070894) polymorphisms with oral cancer in a Taiwanese population. Methods: In this hospital-based study, 496 patients with oral cancer and 992 age-matched and sex-matched healthy controls were genotyped and analysed. Findings: A significantly different frequency distribution of CRYAB C-802G genotypes, but not A-1215G and intron2 genotypes, was noted between the oral cancer and control groups. The CRYAB C-802G G allele conferred an increased risk of oral cancer (p =1.4961025). Patients with CG/GG at CRYAB C-802G had lower 5-year survival and higher recurrence rates than did those with CC (p <0.05). Interpretation: Our results provide the first evidence that the G allele of CRYAB C-802G is associated with risk of oral cancer and this polymorphism might be a useful marker for oral cancer recurrence and survival prediction. The authors declared no conflicts of interest. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: Caveolin-1 (Cav-1), a proposed candidate tumour suppressor, plays a regulatory role in several signalling pathways. The aim in this hospital-based case–control study was to investigate the association of Cav-1 polymorphisms with risk of oral cancer in a central Taiwanese population. Methods: Six hundred patients with oral cancer and 620 age-matched and sex-matched healthy controls were genotyped and analysed by use of polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism. Findings: There were significant differences between oral cancer and control groups in the distributions of Cav-1 genotypes (p =1.7×10–18 and 2.6×10–4) and allelic frequencies in the Cav-1 G14713A (rs3807987) and T29107A (rs7804372) polymorphisms (p =3.3×10–19 and 9.5×10–6, respectively). In the combined genotype analysis, individuals who had GG/AT or GG/AA at Cav-1 G14713A or T29107A had a 0.72-fold (95% confidence interval=0.52–0.99) decreased risk of oral cancer compared with those with GG/TT, whereas any other combinations were associated with increased risk. The presence of metastasis was also correlated with both Cav-1 G14713A AA and C-1 T29107A TT genotypes. Interpretation: Cav-1 seems to have a role in oral cancer; the A allele of Cav-1 G14713A is associated with increased risk, A allele of Cav-1 T29107A is protective, and AA/TT on these two polymorphisms might be the combined genotype that is associated with the most risk for the development of oral cancer. These variants could be novel risk markers for early detection and prediction of distant metastasis. The authors declared no conflicts of interest. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]