The effects of earthworm fibrinolytic enzyme on cervical cancer Caski cells based on CiteSpace and VOSviewer visual analysis

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of earthworm fibrinolytic enzyme (EFE) on proliferation, migration, and apoptosis of Caski cells. METHODS: A visual analysis was conducted based on CiteSpace and VOSviewer using 257 studies related to EFE. The optimum concentration of EFE on Caski cells was screened by CCK-8 assay in vitro. The effects of EFE on Caski cell migration, tumorigenicity, protein expression, and apoptosis were determined by cell scratch assay, soft AGAR cloning assay, immunohistochemistry, and flow cytometry. RESULTS: The antitumor activity of EFE has been a hot topic in recent years. EFE significantly inhibited the proliferation of Caski cells compared with the control group, and the difference was statistically significant (P < .0001). The scratch distance of low, medium, and high concentration cells was significantly increased compared with the control group in the cell scratch test, and showed a certain concentration dependence, and the difference was statistically significant (P < .05). The results of soft AGAR cloning showed that tumorigenicity of low, medium, and high concentration was significantly decreased compared with control group, and the difference was statistically significant (P < .001). Immunohistochemical assay showed that the positive rate of low, medium, and high concentration decreased significantly compared with the control group, and the expression of protein was downregulated. Flow cytometry showed that low, medium, and high concentration promoted apoptosis compared with the control group, and the difference was statistically significant (P < .01). CONCLUSION: EFE can inhibit the proliferation and migration of Caski cells and promote cell apoptosis.