Shikonin Inhibits The Proliferation of Cervical Cancer Cells Via FAK/AKT/GSK3β Signalling

Cervical cancer is one of the most common female cancers worldwide, and it is one of the most lethal malignancies of the female reproductive system. Shikonin, a natural pigment of theophyllin, has a variety of biological activities and has shown significant inhibitory effects on a variety of tumours in vitro and in vivo. However, there are few studies on Shikonin in cervical cancer. In the present study, we found that Shikonin inhibited not only the proliferation but also the migration of cervical cancer cells. Our data showed that Shikonin inhibited the proliferation of HeLa and SiHa cells in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. In cervical cancer cells, Shikonin not only inhibited the phosphorylation of FAK, AKT and GSK3β but also inhibited the phosphorylation of FAK, AKT and GSK3β induced by EGF. Further exploring the mechanism, we found that Shikonin could inhibit the proliferation of cervical cancer cells by regulating the phosphorylation of the FAK/AKT/GSK3β pathway. In addition, Shikonin significantly inhibited cell migration and reduced the expression of proteins such as MTA1, TGFβ1 and VEGF. In conclusion, our study elucidated that Shikonin has an inhibitory effect on the proliferation and migration of cervical cancer cells, which may be mediated by the FAK/AKT/GSK3β signalling pathway. Our results suggest that Shikonin has the potential to become a clinical treatment for cervical cancer.