Baicalin reverses radioresistance in nasopharyngeal carcinoma by downregulating autophagy

Abstract Background Radiation resistance is the main cause of recurrence after radiotherapy, and increased autophagy after radiotherapy is related to radiotherapy resistance. This study aims to investigate the reversal effect of baicalin on radioresistance and its related mechanism. Methods CCK-8 and flow cytometry were used to detect the effect of proliferation and apoptosis by baicalin. Clone formation test was used to verify the effect of baicalin radiosensitization. Western blot analysis and electron microscopy were employed to observe the effect of baicalin on autophagy. Results Compared with the radiation therapy (RT) group, the RT combined baicalin (RT + BA) group showed a significantly low 2 Gy survival fraction of radiation therapy (P