Chemopreventive effect of Cousinia shulabadensis Attar & Ghahraman ethanol extract.

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) play an important role in several pathologic processes such as malignancy in which they facilitate invasion and metastasis and can be targets for anticancer therapies. Here, in this study, we investigated the cytotoxicity effect of Cousinia shulabadensis Attar & Ghahraman extract as well as its impact on MMPs activity using a model of cell line (Fibrosarcoma-Wehi164). To assess anti-invasiveness potentials, a modified zymoanalysis method was used to measure MMP-2 and MMP-9 activities in the conditioned-media. The concentration necessary to produce 50% cell death was >80 microg/ml for ethanol extract of Cousinia shulabadensis, while a 23 microg/ml concentration of the diclofenac sodium produced the same effect. The invasion of WEHI 164 cells was considerably inhibited at concentrations > 20 microg/ml by total plant extract. The total extract of the plant did not show high toxicity at all tested concentrations, but demonstrated significant inhibition of MMP activity in dose-response fashion.