Investigation of the potential antitumor activity of PLK1 inhibitor SBE13 in colon cancer cell line HT29

Background: High levels of Polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1), which have been found to be abnormally expressed in many tumor types, are known to contribute to tumorigenesis and poor prognosis. Therefore, specific targeting of PLK1 is an important strategy for cancer therapy. In this study, it was aimed to investigate the cytotoxic effect of SBE13, one of the PLK1 inhibitors, against HT29 colon adenocarcinoma cells and its apoptotic potential. Methods: The cytotoxic effect of SBE13 on HT29 was determined by XTT colorimetric assay. Flow cytometry was also used to determine apoptosis. Results: SBE13 showed a dose-dependent cytotoxic effect in HT29 cells and its IC50 value was calculated as 11.79 µM for 48 h. Moreover, the Annexin V binding assay revealed that SBE13 treatment significantly increased the apoptosis in HT29 cells. Conclusion: Generally, SBE13 exerts a cytotoxic effect promoted by apoptosis in colon cancer cells HT29. Although the anticancer efficacy of SBE13 in colon cancer is promising, this potential effect should be reinforced by further studies.