BISPHENOL A ENHANCES GROWTH OF Hep-G2 CANCER CELLS BY UPREGULATING EXPRESSION OF PRO – INFLAMMATORY AND PRO – ANGIOGENESIS PROTEINS

Bisphenol A (BPA) is primarily used in the manufacture of plastics and resins. There are many scientific reports that point to the adverse effects of this chemical to different animal models. There has been an increase in use of plastic during the last couple of decades and this has increased human exposure to plasticizers like Bisphenol A. But since little is known on how these endocrine disruptors especially BPA promote cancer progression, the study investigated the effect of BPA on hepatocellular carcinoma cell line Hep-G2 by evaluating the expression of molecules involved in the processes of inflammation, cancer and angiogenesis. Cell viability studies using MTT assay, RT-PCR studies and Western blotting studies were performed to check effect of Bisphenol A on liver cancer cells. Cell viability studies, RT-PCR studies and Western blotting studies showed a dose dependent increase in the expression of factors involved in cancer progression which decreased when the cells were treated with Meloxicam, a COX-2 inhibitor. The results indicate that BPA up-regulates the expression of factors involved in the inflammatory pathway thus helping in the progression of cancer.