Growth retardation and apoptotic death of tumor cells by Artemisia herba-alba oral administration in Ehrlich solid carcinoma bearing mice

ABSTRACT At present, there is a rapidly growing interest in studying the cytotoxic effects of Artemisia herba alba Asso, Asteraceae, in various cancer cell lines. However, its antitumor effectiveness has not been investigated. Therefore, the current study was conducted to study the effect of A. herba alba extract on the proliferation and growth of solid tumor cells in Ehrlich Solid Carcinoma bearing mice. Oral administration of A. herba alba extract resulted in significant reductions in tumor size, tumor weight and mice body weight, as well as caused concurrent significant increases in the DNA breakages and apoptotic DNA damage induction in a time-dependent manner. A. herba alba extract also raised the expression level of p53 gene and reduced of K-ras expression in a time-dependent manner. Minor histological lesions were observed in the liver and kidney tissues sections of mice administered A. herba alba extract compared with the high histological lesions observed in the liver and kidney tissues of artesunate and cisplatin treated groups. Thus, we concluded that A. herba alba extract exhibited promising potential antitumor efficacy with greater safety than artesunate and the commercially used anticancer drug cisplatin in mice.

Chemical composition, antiproliferative, antioxidant and antibacterial activities of essential oils from aromatic plants growing in Sudan

Objective To explore the potential of essential oil, as therapeutic molecule source, from olibanum of Boswellia papyrifera (Burseraceae), leafy stems of Cymbopogon schoenanthus (Poaceae) and Croton zambesicus (Euphorbiaceae) and rhizome of Cyperus rotundus (Cyperaceae) found in Sudan. Respective essential oil was evaluated for anti-proliferative, antibacterial and antioxidant activity. Methods Essential oils were extracted by hydrodistillation and then analysed by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC–MS). Anti-proliferative activity was determined against human cell lines (MCF7 and MDA-MB231, HT29 and HCT116) by the thiazolyl blue tetrazolium bromide (MTT) procedure. Antioxidant activity was evaluated by diphenyl 2 pycril hydrazil (DPPH) assay. Antibacterial activity was determined against two Gram-positive and two Gram-negative bacteria by microdilution method. Results The essential oil from olibanum of Boswellia papyrifera contained mainly alcohol and ester derivatives (46.82%) while monoterpenes (69.84%) dominated in Corton zambesicus oil. Sesquiterpenes were the most highly represented classes of terpene derivatives in Cyperus schoenanthus (71.59%) and Cyperus rotundus (44.26%). Oil of Cymbopogon schoenanthus revealed the best anti-proliferative activity against HCT116 cell line with IC50 value at (19.1 ± 2.0) μg/mL. Oil of Croton zambesicus showed the best antioxidant activity [EC50 (4.20 ± 0.19) mg/mL]. All oils showed good antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) value ranged from 16 to 250 μg/mL. Conclusions The results suggest that the essential oils of these plants could be used as a source of natural anti-proliferative, antioxidant and antibacterial agents.

Chemical composition, antiproliferative, antioxidant and antibacterial activities of essential oils from aromatic plants growing in Sudan

OBJECTIVE@#To explore the potential of essential oil, as therapeutic molecule source, from olibanum of Boswellia papyrifera (Burseraceae), leafy stems of Cymbopogon schoenanthus (Poaceae) and Croton zambesicus (Euphorbiaceae) and rhizome of Cyperus rotundus (Cyperaceae) found in Sudan. Respective essential oil was evaluated for anti-proliferative, antibacterial and antioxidant activity.@*METHODS@#Essential oils were extracted by hydrodistillation and then analysed by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Anti-proliferative activity was determined against human cell lines (MCF7 and MDA-MB231, HT29 and HCT116) by the thiazolyl blue tetrazolium bromide (MTT) procedure. Antioxidant activity was evaluated by diphenyl 2 pycril hydrazil (DPPH) assay. Antibacterial activity was determined against two Gram-positive and two Gram-negative bacteria by microdilution method.@*RESULTS@#The essential oil from olibanum of Boswellia papyrifera contained mainly alcohol and ester derivatives (46.82%) while monoterpenes (69.84%) dominated in Corton zambesicus oil. Sesquiterpenes were the most highly represented classes of terpene derivatives in Cyperus schoenanthus (71.59%) and Cyperus rotundus (44.26%). Oil of Cymbopogon schoenanthus revealed the best anti-proliferative activity against HCT116 cell line with IC50 value at (19.1 ± 2.0) μg/mL. Oil of Croton zambesicus showed the best antioxidant activity [EC50 (4.20 ± 0.19) mg/mL]. All oils showed good antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) value ranged from 16 to 250 μg/mL.@*CONCLUSIONS@#The results suggest that the essential oils of these plants could be used as a source of natural anti-proliferative, antioxidant and antibacterial agents.

Potential of four marine-derived fungi extracts as anti-proliferative and cell death-inducing agents in seven human cancer cell lines

Objective: To evaluate the in vitro anticancer activity of crude ethyl acetate extracts of the culture of four marine-derived fungi Aspergillus similanensis KUFA 0013 (E1), Neosartorya paulistensis KUFC 7897 (E2), Neosartorya siamensis KUFA 0017 (E4) and Talaromyces trachyspermus KUFC 0021 (E3) on a panel of seven human cancer cell lines. Methods: Effects on cell proliferation, induction of DNA damage and cell death were assessed by MTT and clonogenic assays, comet assay and nuclear condensation assay, respectively. Results: The proliferation of HepG2, HCT116 and A375 cells decreased after incubation with the extracts E2 and E4. The anti-proliferative effect was confirmed by morphologic alterations and by clonogenic assay. Both extracts also induced cell death in HepG2 and HCT116 cells. Doxorubicin was used as a positive control and showed in vitro anticancer activity. Conclusions: This study demonstrated, for the first time, that extracts of Neosartorya paulistensis and Neosartorya siamensis have selective anti-proliferative and cell death activities in HepG2, HCT16 and A375 cells. The bioactivity of these extracts suggests a potential for biotechnological applications and substantiates that both should be further considered for the elucidation of the molecular targets and signal transduction pathways involved.

Potential of four marine-derived fungi extracts as anti-proliferative and cell death-inducing agents in seven human cancer cell lines

OBJECTIVE@#To evaluate the in vitro anticancer activity of crude ethyl acetate extracts of the culture of four marine-derived fungi Aspergillus similanensis KUFA 0013 (E1), Neosartorya paulistensis KUFC 7897 (E2), Neosartorya siamensis KUFA 0017 (E4) and Talaromyces trachyspermus KUFC 0021 (E3) on a panel of seven human cancer cell lines.@*METHODS@#Effects on cell proliferation, induction of DNA damage and cell death were assessed by MTT and clonogenic assays, comet assay and nuclear condensation assay, respectively.@*RESULTS@#The proliferation of HepG2, HCT116 and A375 cells decreased after incubation with the extracts E2 and E4. The anti-proliferative effect was confirmed by morphologic alterations and by clonogenic assay. Both extracts also induced cell death in HepG2 and HCT116 cells. Doxorubicin was used as a positive control and showed in vitro anticancer activity.@*CONCLUSIONS@#This study demonstrated, for the first time, that extracts of Neosartorya paulistensis and Neosartorya siamensis have selective anti-proliferative and cell death activities in HepG2, HCT16 and A375 cells. The bioactivity of these extracts suggests a potential for biotechnological applications and substantiates that both should be further considered for the elucidation of the molecular targets and signal transduction pathways involved.

Chemical Constituents from the Aerial Parts of Bupleurum falcatum L. and Biological Evidences

In this study, phytochemical investigation on the aerial parts of Bupleurum falcatum resulted in the isolation of fourteen compounds including three quinic acid derivatives (1 - 3), five flavonoids (4 - 8), three monoterpene glycosides (9 - 11), and three saikosaponins (12 - 14). Compound 1 was first isolated from nature and unambiguously determined to be 3-O-feruloyl 5-O-caffeoylquinic acid on the basis of the extensive spectroscopic evidence. Biological testing revealed that saikosaponin A (12) and saikosaponin D (13) showed moderate antiproliferative effects on HL-60 and HepG2 cancer cell lines.

Antioxidant and anti-proliferative activities of Sabah Ruellia tuberosa.

The study was carried out to evaluate the total phenolic constituents, antioxidant and anti-proliferative activities of Sabah Ruellia tuberosa. The total phenolic and flavonoid contents of the plant extracts were determined by using Folin-Ciocalteau and aluminium chloride colorimetric assays, respectively. The antioxidant activity of the plant extracts was evaluated using DPPH free radical scavenging assay while the anti-proliferative activity was evaluated using MTT assay against the human breast cancer (MCF-7) and cervical cancer (HeLa) cell lines. The methanol leaf extract was found to possess the highest total phenolic content (82.67 ± 2.09 mg GAE/g) while the ethyl acetate leaf extract was found to possess the highest total flavonoid content (152.77 ± 4.68 mg Cat/g). The ethyl acetate leaf possessed the highest radical scavenging activity, with IC50 of 720 μg/ml. Meanwhile, the methanol stem extract showed the highest anti-proliferative activity against MCF-7 cancer cells, with IC50 of 22 μg/ml but none of the extracts exhibited strong anti-proliferative activity against the HeLa cancer cell lines. Significant correlation was found between the total phenolic/flavonoid contents with the total antioxidant activity while weak correlation was found between the total phenolic/flavonoid contents with the inhibition of MCF-7 cell proliferation. Our findings indicate that Sabah Ruellia tuberosa could be a potential source for natural antioxidant as well as chemo-preventive agent against breast cancer in future. Thus, further isolation and characterization of the respective bioactive compounds from the plants are necessary.

Study on Anti-Proliferative Activities of Cultured <i>Cordyceps Militaris </i>on Cancer Cells / 日本補完代替医療学会誌

<i>Cordyceps militaris</i> has been known to produce an anticancer agent, cordycepin. Investigation on optimum culture condition for <i>C. militaris</i> had been performed. In the research program for discovering a novel function in the culture of <i>C. militaris</i>, the culture media was applied to a proliferation assays using various cell lines. The media showed significant anti-proliferative activities against al cell lines, especially to human leukemia cell line HL-60. The activity-guided purification of active ingredient was performed to obtain uracil. To the best of our knowledge, uracil has not been reported to possess anti-proliferative activity. However, the uracil obtained from the culture media was subjected to ICP-MS analysis to reveal that sodium, potassium and magnesium were found to co-exist with uracil, which might show anti-proliferative activity. Further study on the mechanism of the expression of the activity is now underway.<br>