Flavonoids in <i>Ageratum conyzoides</i> L. Exert Potent Antitumor Effects on Human Cervical Adenocarcinoma HeLa Cells <i>In Vitro</i> and <i>In Vivo</i>

Abstract

The <i>Ageratum conyzoides</i> L. (<i>A. conyzoides</i>) is commonly used as a traditional medicine, and its antitumor effects have also been studied. However, the functional roles of flavonoids in <i>A. conyzoides</i> in antitumor activities have not been clarified. The present study is aimed at investigating the biological effects of flavonoids in <i>A. conyzoides</i> on human cervical adenocarcinoma. Firstly, we detected that flavonoids in <i>A. conyzoides</i> significantly inhibited the proliferation, invasion, migration, and clonality of human cervical adenocarcinoma HeLa cells <i>in vitro</i>. Furthermore, we found that flavonoids in <i>A. conyzoides</i> induced significant S phase arrest and apoptosis and obviously decreased the intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) level in HeLa cells. Finally, we found that flavonoids in <i>A. conyzoides</i> significantly inhibited the HeLa xenograft tumor growth and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) <i>in vivo</i>. In conclusion, our results demonstrated the obvious antitumor effects of flavonoids in <i>A. conyzoides</i> on HeLa cells, suggesting that flavonoids in <i>A. conyzoides</i> could be provided as a novel therapeutic compound for human cervical adenocarcinoma.