Objective:To investigate the effects of matrine on antigen presentation of dendritic cells (DCs),and to explore the pharmacological mechanism of matrine on anti-tumor effect.Methods:Different concentrations(0,1,2,4,8 and 16 μ g/mL) of matrine were co-cultured with DCs,the harvested DCs were co-cultured with antigens of Lewis lung cancer (LLC) cells,and then DCs and T cells were co-cultured to produce DCs-activated killer (DAK) cells,which have significant tumor-killing activity.The expression of cytokines,mRNA and protein of toll-like receptors (TLRs) in DCs were detected by enzyme linked immunosobent assay,polymerase chain reaction and Western blot,respectively.And the killing effect of DAK were measured by MTr assay.Results:Matrine significantly increased the mRNA expression of TLR7,TLR8,myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88),tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 6 (TRAF-6) and I κ B kinase (IKK),as well as the protein expression of TLR7 and TLR8,and up-regulated the levels of interleukin-12 (IL-12),IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α),meanwhile,it also increased the expressions of MHC-Ⅱ,CD54,CD80 and CD86 in DCs.DCs-activated effector T cells had significant tumor-killing activity.When the concentration of matrine was more than 4 μ g/mL,all indices had significant difference (P＜0.01 or P＜0.05).Conclusion:Matrine plays an anti-tumor role by regulating TLRs signal transduction pathway,promoting the secretion of inflammatory cytokines and enhancing immune function.