Memantine enhances the cisplatin-induced apoptosis in A2780 ovarian cancer cells via CyclinD1 and hTERT inhibition

Cisplatin is the first-line treatment for ovarian cancer. Therefore, the use of effective compounds with synergistic effects can be considered a new strategy. Memantine is an NMDA receptors blocker which is overexpressed in cancers, including ovarian cancer and thus can be an efficient adjunct in cancer treatment. In this study, the MTT test, Flow cytometry, and DAPI staining was used to examine the combined effect of cisplatin with memantine. A study on Cyclin D1 and hTERT expression levels were conducted by qRT-PCR, and also cell cycle study of treated cells was performed. Our findings demonstrated that memantine enhances cytotoxicity in A2780 ovarian cancer cells. Apoptosis was also enhanced in cells treated with the combination of memantine and cisplatin. Memantine reduced the expression of Cyclin D1 and hTERT in A2780 cells and decreased the number of cancer cells in the cell cycle's growth and division phase. Our study suggests that memantine can be considered a potent adjuvant in the treatment of ovarian cancer.