Effects of Galium aparine extract on the cell viability, cell cycle and cell death in breast cancer cell lines.
Paraules clau
Resum
BACKGROUND
Galium species have been traditionally used for its anti-cancer, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and cardioprotective effects in the folk medicine. Galium aparine (GA) is a typical climbing plant growing widespread in Anatolia.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the potential anti-proliferative and apoptotic effect of GA methanol (MeOH) extract on MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer cells and MCF-10A untransformed breast epithelial cells.
METHODS
First, the extract was characterized by both liquid chromatography/quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC/Q-TOF/MS) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analyses. Then, cell viability and cell cycle distribution were investigated by XTT assay and PI staining by flow cytometry, respectively. Cell death was determined by Annexin V FITC/7-AAD staining.
RESULTS
A total of 14 major phytochemicals were identified by LC/Q-TOF/MS and 34 volatile compounds were determined by GC-MS. The extract was cytotoxic in both breast cancer cell lines in a concentration and time dependent manner and showed G1 block after 72h extract treatment. However, it was not cytotoxic to MCF-10A breast epithelial cells. Flow cytometry analyses revealed that apoptosis was induced in MDA-MB-231 cells; however, necrosis was induced in MCF-7 cells.
CONCLUSIONS
Our study suggests that GA MeOH extract may have potential anti-cancer effects against breast cancer cells without impairing normal breast epithelial cells. Ability to induction of non-apoptotic cell death besides apoptotic cell death by this complex plant-derived mixture may enable the killing of apoptosis resistant breast cancer cells but further studies should be conducted to investigate the bioavailability and metabolism of it in vivo.
