Fig. 4.

Effect of β-elemene and cisplatin on apoptosis in A2780/CP ovarian tumor cells, as determined by the histological identification of nuclear karyorrhexis. Cells were treated with β-elemene (ELE) alone, cisplatin (CDDP) alone, or β-elemene plus cisplatin for 48 h at the indicated concentrations. Untreated cells were used as the control. Cells were harvested, processed into cell blocks, sectioned, and evaluated after staining with hematoxylin and eosin. Cell morphology was observed, and cells were counted under a light microscope. Cells with karyorrhectic nuclear features are reported as a percentage of the total cells counted (a). Cisplatin or β-elemene independently induced apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner, and an additive effect was observed in cells treated with both drugs. P <0.05 for cisplatin plus β-elemene versus cisplatin alone or β-elemene alone. Representative images from three separate experiments show intact nuclei stained with hematoxylin and eosin in untreated cells (b) and karyorrhectic nuclei in β-elemene- and cisplatin-treated cells (c)