Mechanistic insights into the anti-metastatic effects of calycosin from Ruanjianhugan tablets on hepatocellular carcinoma <i>via</i> CHEK1 targeting: a network analysis

, CCK-8, colony-formation, Transwell and Western-blot assays showed that Cal markedly suppressed HCC-cell proliferation, colony formation, migration, invasion and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. In xenograft nude-mouse and tail-vein lung metastasis models, exogenous Cal bound CHEK1 and thereby inhibited HCC metastasis and tumor growth. Collectively, these results not only establish Cal as the core pharmacodynamic component of Ruanjianhugan tablets but also unveil a novel Cal-CHEK1 axis underlying anti-HCC metastasis.