Polygonatum cyrtonema lectin induces apoptosis and autophagy in human melanoma A375 cells through a mitochondria-mediated ROS–p38–p53 pathway

Polygonatum cyrtonema lectin (PCL), a mannose-binding lectin, has been reported to induce cytotoxicity and apoptosis. Herein, we demonstrated that PCL-induced apoptosis and autophagy in A375 cells. The apoptotic mechanism was that PCL treatment regulated Bax, Bcl-xL and Bcl-2 proteins, leading to mitochondrial depolarization, cytochrome c release and caspase activation. Subsequently, we found that PCL treatment abrogated glutathione antioxidant system and induced mitochondria to generate ROS accumulation, resulting in p38–p53 activation. Moreover, we confirmed that the ROS–p38–p53 pathway was involved in PCL-induced autophagy. In conclusion, these results indicate that PCL induces apoptosis and autophagy via a mitochondrial-mediated ROS–p38–p53 pathway.