Abstract:Objective To investigate the effect of Propofol on growth of human gastric cancer xenografts in nude mice and the possible mechanisms. Methods Human gastric cancer cell line SGC7901 was cultured. The models of subcutaneous tumor were established in thirty BALB/c nude mice, and randomly divided into a control group, a saline group and a Propofol group. The mice in the control group did not receive any treatment, those in the saline group were given intraperitoneal injection of saline 1.5 ml/kg once a day for 2 consecutive weeks, while the mice in the Propofol group received Propofol 20 mg/kg once a day for 2 consecutive weeks. The changes of the general condition of the nude mice before and after administration were observed. The caliper was used to measure the tumor size every 3 days after administration, and the tumor volume was calculated. The nude mice were sacrificed on the 15th d, and the tumors were isolated. The expressions of nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2 ), NAD(P)Hquinine oxidoreductase 1 (NQO1), heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1 ), B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2 ), Bcl-2 associated X protein (Bax ) genes and proteins in the tumor tissues of different groups were detected using qRT-PCR and Western blot, respectively. Results The tumor volume in the Propofol group was smaller than that in the control group and the saline group 3, 6, 9, 12 and 15 d after administration, the differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Compared with the control group and the saline group, the tumor weight was decreased, while the tumor inhibition rate was increased in the Propofol group, the differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Compared with the control group and the saline group, the relative expression levels of Nrf2 , NQO1, HO-1 and Bcl-2 mRNAs and proteins in the tumor tissues were decreased, while the relative expression levels of Bax mRNA and protein were increased in the Propofol group, the differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Conclusions Propofol could inhibit the growth of human gastric cancer xenografts in nude mice. The mechanism may be related to inhibition of Nrf2/ARE signaling pathway to promote apoptosis.