Leukemia and Boswellic Acid

Leukemia Research

Volume 23, Issue 1, January 1999, Pages 43–50

"Boswellic acid acetate (BC-4), a compound isolated from the herb Boswellia carterii Birdw., can induce differentiation and apoptosis of leukemia cells...The dual apoptotic and differentiation effects of BC-4 suggest that it may be a powerful agent in the treatment of leukemia."

Boswellic acid acetate induces differentiation and apoptosis in leukemia cell lines

• Yongkui Jing^a, d, , 
• Shigeo Nakajo^c, 
• Lijuan Xia^a, 
• Kusuyasu Nakaya^c, 
• Qicheng Fang^b, 
• Samuel Waxman^d, 
• Rui Han^a

• ^a Department of Pharmacology, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, People’s Republic of China
• ^b Department of Phytochemistry, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, People’s Republic of China
• ^c Department of Biological Chemistry, Showa University, Tokyo, Japan
• ^d Mount Sinai Medical Center, Box 1178, 1 Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA

Received 10 February 1998, Revised 1 May 1998, Accepted 5 May 1998, Available online 28 October 1998

 Abstract

Boswellic acid acetate (BC-4), a compound isolated from the herb Boswellia carterii Birdw., can induce differentiation and apoptosis of leukemia cells. Based on cell morphology and NBT reduction, BC-4 induced monocytic differentiation of myeloid leukemia HL-60, U937 and ML-1 cells at a dose under 12.5 μg/ml (24.2 μM). BC-4 was a potent inducer, with 90% of the cells showing morphologic changes and 80–90% of the cells showing NBT reduction. Specific and non-specific esterase were also increased by BC-4. Based on benzidine staining assay, BC-4 failed to induce erythroid leukemia DS-19 and K562 cells differentiation. In contrast to its selective differentiation effect, BC-4 strongly inhibited growth of all cell lines tested. The growth inhibition effect was dose- and time-dependent. In HL-60 cells, 20 μg/ml (38.8 μM) of BC-4 decreased viable cell number by 60% at 24 h, whereas at 3 days there was virtually no viable cells. Morphologic and DNA fragmentation analysis proved that BC-4 induced cell apoptosis. The dual apoptotic and differentiation effects of BC-4 suggest that it may be a powerful agent in the treatment of leukemia.

Keywords

• Boswellic acid acetate; 
• Leukemia; 
• Differentiation; 
• Apoptosis

Abbreviations

• 5-LO, 5-lipoxygenase; 
• TPA, 12-O-tetra-decanoylphorbol-13-acetate; 
• NBT nitroblue tetrazolium; 
• NSE, α-naphthyl acetate esterase; 
• SE, AS-D chloroacetate esterase

Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 212 2413194; fax: +1 212 9965787; e-mail: jing@msvax.mssm.edu.

Copyright © 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

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