Effect of Glycyrrhizic Acid on the Viability of Hela Cervical Adenocarcinoma Cell Line at Different Concentrations of Sex Steroid Hormones

The persistence of human papillomavirus affects the processes of proliferation and differentiation of the stratified squamous epithelium of the cervix with the development of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and cervical cancer. Hormonal factors have an impact on the process of neoplastic transformation. The aim of this study was an evaluation of the effect of glycyrrhizic acid on the viability of HeLa cervical adenocarcinoma cells at different concentrations of sex steroid hormones. The half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) of glycyrrhizic acid against HeLa cervical adenocarcinoma cells was 72.2 μM. The IC₅₀ of glycyrrhizic acid increased by 13.4% and 17% for testosterone, decreased by 1.8% and 11.8% for estradiol, and increased by 8.7% and 8.6% for progesterone, respectively, in the presence of the hormones at concentrations of 10 μM and 1 μM. Thus, testosterone and progesterone at concentrations of 10 and 1 μM diminished the antiproliferative effect of glycyrrhizic acid, while estradiol at a low concentration (1 μM) enhanced it.