Abstract: To explore the effect of ethyl acetate extract of wild apricot leaves on proliferation and apoptosis of breast cancer MCF7 cell,CCK8 assay was used to detect the inhibitory effect of extract of wild apricot leaves on the proliferation of MCF7 cells.Flow cytometry was used to detect the apoptosis rate.Inverted fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry were used to detect the changes of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS).RT-PCR was used to detect the expression of cell cycle and apoptosis-related genes.Detection kit was used to measure caspase-3 activity.The results showed that extract of wild apricot leaves could reduce the survival rate of MCF7 cells,promote cell apoptosis and increase the level of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS).Further,it could up-regulate Bax,down-regulate Bcl-2,enhance caspase-3 activity,and reduce the expression of CDK4,Cyclin E and Cyclin D1.In conclusion,ethyl acetate extract of wild apricot leaves could inhibit the proliferation of MCF7 cells by regulating cyclin expressions,and induce apoptosis of MCF7 by caspase pathway and the up-regulating of ROS level.

Key words: ethyl acetate extract of wild apricot leaves, breast cancer, cell proliferation, apoptosis, reactive oxygen species