Anticancer Effect of Enterococcus faecium, Isolated from Vaginal Fluid, on Ovarian Cancer Cells

Authors
Soraya Pourmollaei 1
Azizeh Farshbaf-Khalili 2
Abolfazl Barzegari 3
Sepideh Bastani 3
Soraya Babaie 2
Amir Fattahi* 4
Mahnaz Shahnazi 1
1 Department of Midwifery, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
2 Aging Research Institute, Physical Medicine, and Rehabilitation Research Centre, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
3 Research Center of Pharmaceutical Nanotechnology, Biomedicine Institute, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
4 Womenʼs Reproductive Health Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
10.61186/ibj.3846
Abstract
Background: Given the association between cervicovaginal microbiota and OVC, we investigated the effect of Enterococcus faecium conditioned medium (CM) on OVC (Caov-4) cells.

Methods: CM was obtained from the bacterium E. faecium isolated from the vagina of healthy women. The Caov-4 cells were treated with varying concentrations of CM that comprised co-cultured bacteria with 0.2, 0.5, 1, 1.5, and 2 OD for 12, 24, and 48 h. The apoptosis and growth of cancer cells were evaluated by 4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) staining, flow cytometry, and DNA laddering assay. Moreover, the expression of PTEN, BAX, BCL2, and AKT1 genes were analyzed using real-time PCR.

Results: The CM at a concentration of 0.5 OD from the cultured bacteria and incubation time of 48 h showed the highest negative effect on the viability of cancer cells. The CM treatment increased DNA fragmentation and also induced apoptosis in Caov-4 cells. Interestingly, CM could decrease the expression of proapoptotic genes were less, while antiapoptotic genes were more than fluorouracil in the presence of CM.

Conclusion: CM of human-derived E. faecium could have an anticancer effect on OVC cells in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. This study demonstrated that E. faecium secretes anticancer substances into the CM, which could directly affect the viability and apoptosis of cancer cells.
Keywords
Apoptosis
Enterococcus faecium
Ovarian Neoplasms
Iranian Biomedical Journal
Volume 27, Issue 4 - Serial Number 109
July and August 2023
Pages 205-213