Fig. 1.

Bee venom inhibits the prolife-ration and expression of HPV E6 and E7-positive cervical-cancer cells and increases the expression of p53 and Rb proteins. (A) WST cell proliferation assay showing dose-dependent inhibition of C33A, Caski and HeLa cells. C33A, Caski, and HeLa cells were treated with 0, 0.625, 1.25, 2.5, 5, and 10 µg/ml of BV for 24 h (B). At 0, 12, 24, and 48 h of treatment, we detected cell proliferation by MTT assay. (C) RT-PCR-based detection of time-dependent effects of 5 µg/ml of BV on the expression of HPV proteins, HPV16 E6, HPV 16 E7, HPV18 E6, and HPV E7 in C33A, Caski and HeLa cells treated for 0, 12, and 24 h. (D) Protein levels of HPV16 E6, HPV16 E7, p53, and Rb in Caski and HeLa cells treated with 0, 1, 5, and 10 µg/ml BV. β-actin was used as a loading control.