Umbelliprenin from Ferula szowitsiana Activates both Intrinsic and Extrinsic Pathways of Apoptosis in Jurkat T-CLL Cell Line

Umbelliprenin is a prenylated compound, which belongs to the class of sesquiterpene coumarins. It is extracted from dried roots of Ferula szwitsiana collected from the mountains of Golestan forest (Golestan Province, north of Iran). Induction of apoptosis in Jurkat T-CLL cells has been previously shown. In this study, effect of umbelliprenin on proapoptotic caspases (caspase-8 and -9) and antiapoptotic Bcl-2 family protein was studied. Jurkat cells were incubated with umbelliprenin. Cells were then lysed and activation of proteins was studied by Western blot analysis. In this study, we showed that umbelliprenin activates intrinsic and extrinsic pathways of apoptosis by the activation of caspase-8 and -9 respectively. Inhibition of Bcl-2 was also shown. In conclusion, umbelliprenin induced apoptosis in Jurkat cells through caspase-dependent apoptosis pathway.