Anticancer activities of a chemically sulfated polysaccharide obtained from Grifola frondosa and its combination with 5-fluorouracil against human gastric carcinoma cells

Chemically sulfated polysaccharide (S-GAP-P) was derived from water-insoluble polysaccharide of Grifolafrondosa mycelia. In this research, we investigated the anticancer effects of S-GAP-P and its combination with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) on human gastric carcinoma SGC-7901 cells. Results showed that S-GAP-P distinctly inhibited SGC-7901 cells growth in a dose-dependent manner and induced cell apoptosis evidenced by characteristic DNA ladder and sub-G(0)/G(1) peak. Furthermore, the combination of S-GAP-P (10-50 mu g/ml) with 1 mu g/ml 5-FU resulted in a significant inhibition on SGC-7901 cells growth, meaning the beneficial interaction between the two drugs. All these results suggested that S-GAP-P has evident anticancer activity through apoptotic induction and could significantly accelerate the anticancer activity of 5-FU. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.