Home General Physiology and Biophysics 2025 General Physiology and Biophysics Vol.44, No.4, p. 317–326, 2025

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Founded: 1982
ISSN 1338-4325 (online)
ISSN 0231-5882 (print)
Published in English,
6 times per year

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General Physiology and Biophysics Vol.44, No.4, p. 317–326, 2025

Title: Worenine enhances the sensitivity of non-small cell lung cancer A549/DDP cells to cisplatin via HIF-1α/BNIP3-mediated mitophagy
Author: Guobiao Yang, Mengmin Xu, Mingliang Wu, Ya Zhang, Feiyan Yang

Abstract: Mitophagy has been implicated in chemoresistance in various cancers. Worenine, an active compound derived from Coptidis rhizome, has exhibited anti-tumor activity. We aimed to clarify the impacts of worenine on regulating the cisplatin (DDP) sensitivity and mitophagy in DDP-resistant non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. The DDP-resistant NSCLC cell line (A549/DDP) were established via exposure to escalating DDP concentrations. Its resistance characteristics were confirmed by CCK-8 and flow cytometry assays. Moreover, the effects of worenine and/or DDP on the A549/DDP cells viability, colony formation abilities, apoptosis, and mitophagy-related proteins were evaluated. The A549/DDP cells were successfully established, with markedly higher IC50 value than A549 cells (25.67 μM vs. 9.555 μM). We noted that the HIF-1α/BNIP3-mediated mitophagy was clearly activated in A549/DDP cells. Worenine decreased A549/DDP cell viability and colony formation abilities, promoted apoptosis, and suppressed HIF-1α/BNIP3-mediated mitophagy. Importantly, worenine enhanced the responsiveness of A549/DDP cells to DDP. Besides, the suppressive impacts of worenine on A549/DDP cells were reversed by HIF-1α overexpression. Our findings indicate that worenine may enhance the sensitivity of A549/DDP cells to DDP via suppressing HIF-1α/BNIP3-mediated mitophagy. Targeting mitophagy may be a promising therapeutic strategy for addressing chemoresistance in NSCLC.

Keywords: Worenine — Cisplatin — Non-small cell lung cancer — Mitophagy — HIF-1α
Year: 2025, Volume: 44, Issue: 4 Page From: 317, Page To: 326
doi:10.4149/gpb_2025012


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