Inositol Hexakisphosphate and Inositol Enhance the Inhibition of Colorectal Cancer Growth and Liver Metastasis by Capecitabine in a Mouse Model

Abstract

To investigate the effects of inositol hexaphosphate (IP6) and inositol (INS) with capecitabine treatment on colorectal cancer (CRC) growth and liver metastasis in mice, we established an orthotopic xenograft mouse model. The study designated five experimental groups: a control group, a model group, a capecitabine (60 mg/kg) treatment group, an IP6 + INS (80 mg/kg: 80 mg/kg) treatment group, and a capecitabine + IP6 + INS (60 mg/kg: 80 mg/kg: 80 mg/kg) treatment group. Compared with the model group, the tumor parameters of the other three treatment groups were significantly reduced. The combination of IP6 and INS with capecitabine is more effective in improving survival rate, reducing tumor weight, and inhibiting liver metastasis. Compared with the model group, the expression of E-cadherin in each treatment group was elevated, while the expression of N-cadherin and vimentin was suppressed. This phenomenon was more obvious in the combination group. The combination more significantly reduced the expression levels of TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-8 in the serum of CRC mice compared with other intervention groups. Our data indicate that IP6 and INS enhanced the effect of capecitabine on CRC growth in mice by modulating the expression of inflammatory factors, intercellular adhesion molecules, and vimentin.

Acknowledgments

We thank all the study participants for their participation and perseverance.

Author Contributions

Chunlei Li and Yifan Ci conceived and designed the experiments, performed the experiments, and contributed to the writing of the manuscript. Xiaohan Liu, Chen Chen and Cuiping Liu analyzed the data. Qianqian Li and Xin Li interpreted the data. Yang Song conceived and designed the experiments, revised the content rigorously. All authors contributed to the development of this manuscript and read and approved the final version.

Declaration of Interest Statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Additional information

Funding

The study was partially funded by National Natural Science Foundation of China grant 81973033.