Objective: To study the inhibitory effect of Zuojinfang and its main ingredient berberine on epithelial-mesenchymal transition of human gastric cancer cell line SGC7901. Method: Zuojinfang freeze-dried powder was prepared. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was adopted to define the purity and content of freeze-dried powder. Berberine standards were compared

and single drug content of freeze-dried powder was detected. Methylthiazolyldiphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was used to detect the effects of Zuojinfang and berberine on the growth of SGC7901 cells

and the concentration of the drug was determined. transwell chamber was used to detect the migration and invasion of cells. The expressions of E-cadherin

N-cadherin were detected by Western blot. Result: Prepared Zuojinfang freeze-dried powder contained 9.85% berberine. The median inhibitory concentration (IC50) of Zuojinfang was 165 mg·L-1. Zuojinfang (165 mg·L-1) and berberine (16.3 mg·L-1) were adopted for the subsequent experiment. Scratch and transwell experiments showed that Zuojinfang and berberine could significantly inhibit the migration and invasion of SGC7901 cells. Western blot analysis showed that Zuojinfang and berberine could significantly up-regulate the expression of E-cadherin in SGC7901 cells and down-regulate the expression of N-cadherin. The expressions of E-cadherin and N-cadherin were statistically significant different (P<0.05). Conclusion: Zuojinfang and berberine could inhibit the growth

migration and invasion of SGC7901 cells and inhibit the epithelial mesenchymal transition. Berberine is the main effective component in compound prescription.