Objective: This study was designed to prove simultaneously blocking both EGFR and COX-2-mediated pathways may be an efficient means of inhibiting cancer cell growth in NPC.
Method: A combination of tarceva (EGFR-selective tyrosine kinase inhibitors) with celecoxib (Cox-2 inhibitor) was studied on its effects on cell growth, cell cycle progression, apoptosis and protein expression in CNE-2 cell lines by cell growth assay, flow cytometric analysis assay and Western blotting.
Result: (1) The inhibition rate of cell growth was higher in the group treated with a combination of two agents than that the sum of rates of the two groups treated with only one agent (P < 0.05). (2) The combination of tarceva with celecoxib significantly induced G1 arrest (P < 0.05), but did not increase apoptosis rate (P > 0.05). (3) The group of combination showed less expressions of p-EGFR and COX-2 than any other group.
Conclusion: Simultaneously blocking EGFR and COX-2 mediated pathways would significantly inhibit the growth of CNE-2 cell line, increase G1 arrest and reduce the expression levels of p-EGFR and COX-2.