Abstract: TCSs, one kind of Chinese traditional herbs, is the serials of anticancer medicine. The purpose is to study the mechanism of tumor inhibitory and killing effects of the TCSs on liver cancer cell line 7721. With methods of flow cytometry and Western blotting, we investigated tumor cell apoptosis induced by the herb. It also examined the expression of apoptotic protein with cytochemistry method. The results indicated that the herb can induce tumor cell apoptosis, and the apoptotic rate can reach to 40 percent. After being treated by the herb, the expression of antiapoptosis gene bc1-2 reduced, and proapoptosis gene Bax increased. The results suggest that to induce target cells apoptosis is the main mechanism to inhibit and kill tumor by the herb.

Key words: TCSs|human liver cancer cell|apoptosis