Cancer is one of the most significant health problems worldwide and thus the development of novel therapeutic agents with fewer side effects is required. The present study investigated the in vitro anticancer effects of a newly isolated fungal protein. In this study, Latcripin-15 (LP-15) regulator of chromosome condensation 1 (RCC1) domain protein, which is obtained from the Lentinula edodes C91-3 fungal strain, was identified, cloned, expressed, purified and re-folded to assess the in vitro antitumor activity of the protein. LP-15 RCC1 full-length cDNA was isolated from Lentinula edodes using 3' and 5'-rapid amplification of cDNA ends and then cloned, expressed, purified and re-folded in vitro. In addition, the effects of the isolated LP-15 RCC1 protein's functional domain on the viability and apoptosis of human lung cancer A549 cells were assessed by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay, transmission electron microscopy, flow cytometry and Hoechst 33258 staining. The LP-15 RCC1 functional domain protein was successfully expressed, purified and re-folded in vitro. Treatment with the LP-15 RCC1 functional domain protein significantly reduced tumor cell viability and induced apoptosis in A549 cells. The results of the present study indicate that the LP-15 RCC1 functional domain requires further investigation as a novel therapeutic agent for cancer therapy.
Keywords: Latcripin-15; Lentinula edodes; RCC1 domain; antitumor activity; apoptosis; prokaryotic expression.