Figure 6.

Combination treatment of rapamycin and COE could further raise the ratio of Bax to Bcl-2 protein and blocked the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathways. ECA-109 cells were treated with 80 mg/l COE and 100 nM rapamycin for 24 h. (A) The combination treatment increased the ratio of Bax to Bcl-2 protein expression above that elicited with treatment of either alone. *P<0.05 and **P<0.01 vs. control. (B) The combination treatment increased blocked activation of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathways above that blocked by treatment of either alone. *P<0.05 and **P<0.01 vs. control. COE, Celastrus orbiculatus extracts; Bcl-2, B-cell lymphoma 2; Bax, Bcl-associated X; PI3K, phosphoinositide-3 kinase; p-Akt, phosphorylated protein kinase B; mTOR, mechanistic target of rapamycin.