Non-targeted cellular metabolomics revealing the metabolomic features and anti-tumor mechanisms of cyanidin-3-O-arabinoside on Caco-2 cells

Cyanidins are considered the most widespread anthocyanin in nature, and the cyanidin-3-O-arabinoside from apple with anti-tumor activity has been screened in our previous study. However, the anti-tumor mechanism of cyanidin-3-O-arabinoside needs to be further researched. In the present study, a UPLC-Q-TOF-MS-based metabomics approach was applied to reveal the metabolite changes and metabolic pathways in Caco-2 cells after cyanidin-3-O-arabinoside treatment. The results showed 10 differential metabolites between cyanidin-3-O-arabinoside treated and untreated Caco-2 cells. Especially, sphingosine, phosphoethanolamine, and taurine were found to be significantly altered in the Caco-2 cell after cyanidin-3-O-arabinoside treatment. A comparison of the Caco-2 cell group treated with cyanidin-3-O-arabinoside versus the control group (simvastatin) revealed seven identical metabolites, including uracil, pantothenate, cytidine, phosphatidylcholine (PC), γ-linolenic acid, dodecanoic acid, and myristic acid. Cyanidin-3-O-arabinoside could exert anti-tumor effects by inducing apoptosis, reducing cell membrane synthesis and energy metabolism, and triggering DNA damage. These results provide new insights into the anti-tumor mechanism of cyanidin-3-O-arabinoside on Caco-2 cells.