Abstract: Objective To investigate the role of β-catenin and caspase-3 in amentoflavone-induced apoptosis of human
colorectal cancer SW480 cells. Methods MTT assay was used to detect the viability of SW480 cells exposed to amentoflavone,
and flow cytometry was employed to assess the cell apoptosis. Western blotting was performed to determine the protein
expressions of β-catenin and caspase-3 in the exposed cells. Results Amentoflavone dose-dependently inhibited the viability of
SW480 cells, and a high concentration of amentoflavone (150 μmol/L) obviously induced apoptosis of the cells. Amentoflavone
exposure caused significantly increased expression of caspase-3 and suppressed β-catenin expression in the cells. Conclusion
Amentoflavone-induced apoptosis in SW480 human colorectal cancer cells is associated with altered expressions of β-catenin
and caspase-3.