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Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

Abstract

Background/aim: Ovarian cancer is the eighth most prevalent malignancy among women globally and ranks third among gynecological cancers in terms of incidence. The limited efficacy of standard chemotherapy, primarily due to intrinsic drug resistance and high recurrence rates, highlights the urgent need for novel therapeutic strategies that are both effective and selectively cytotoxic.

Materials and methods: This study aimed to investigate the combined effects of boric acid (BA), a biologically active boron compound with emerging antitumor potential, and paclitaxel (PTX), a conventional chemotherapeutic agent, on cell viability, cell cycle progression, apoptosis, autophagy-related protein expression, and inflammatory signaling in the chemoresistant OVCAR-3 ovarian cancer cell line. OVCAR-3 cells were treated with increasing concentrations of BA over varying time periods. The half-maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC₅₀) of both BA and PTX were determined using the MTT assay. Flow cytometry was employed to assess cell cycle distribution and apoptosis via Annexin V staining. Additionally, immunofluorescence staining was performed to evaluate the expression of autophagy-related proteins (Beclin-1, LC3, and p62) and proinflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β).

Results: The combination of BA and PTX resulted in significant G₀/G₁ phase cell cycle arrest and a marked increase in apoptotic cell death and the expression of autophagy-related proteins, leading to reduced cell viability in OVCAR-3 cells. Furthermore, cotreatment significantly modulated the expression of proinflammatory cytokines, suggesting a potential immunomodulatory effect associated with the observed cytotoxicity.

Conclusion: The findings of this study provide evidence that boric acid enhances the antitumor efficacy of paclitaxel in drug-resistant ovarian cancer cells through coordinated modulation of cell cycle progression, apoptosis, autophagy-related protein expression, and inflammatory signaling. These findings support the potential of BA as a promising adjuvant for combination chemotherapy in ovarian cancer.

Author ORCID Identifier

NAZMİYE BİTGEN: 0000-0002-6416-9230

GÖZDE ÖZGE ÖNDER: 0000-0002-0515-9286

MÜNEVVER BARAN: 0000-0003-0369-1022

FATMA ESEN KARAKUŞ: 0009-0000-3312-4788

MELİKE AKBULUT: 0000-0001-9761-046X

ARZU YAY: 0000-0002-0541-8372

DOI

10.55730/1300-0144.6377

Keywords

apoptosis, autophagy, Boric acid, inflammatory, OVCAR-3

First Page

1332

Last Page

1342

Publisher

The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TÜBİTAK)

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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