What poses a significant threat to cancer patients is not the primary tumor but rather metastasis. Hence, the development of treatments targeting metastatic cells is a crucial goal in the pursuit of new therapies that inhibit metastasis, ultimately improving the long-term survival prospects of patients.
The objective of the current study was to examine the inhibitory effects of the polyphenol epigallocatechin‑3‑gallate (EGCG) on migration capacity. This was assessed using an in vitro agarose spot assay and microRNA profiling in four cell lines: MDA-MB-231, MCF-7, HeLa, and HEK-293. The results demonstrated a significant reduction in the migration capacity of these cells when exposed to EGCG. Immunofluorescence staining revealed that EGCG had no impact on phospho-Profilin.
Furthermore, EGCG led to an upregulation of hsa-miR-200a and hsa-miR-146a in MDA-MB-231, while it did not affect microRNA-124 or its target gene (alpha-actinin-4). Importantly, the inhibitory effect of EGCG on cell migration could not be attributed to the downregulation of EGFR or CD29.
These findings strongly suggest that EGCG effectively inhibits the migration of breast cancer cells. However, further investigation is warranted to fully elucidate the underlying mechanisms and potential therapeutic implications of this inhibition.