Yin-Yin Siew1, Hui-Chuing Yew2, Soek-Ying Neo3, See-Voon Seow4, Si-Min Lew5, Shun-Wei Lim6, Claire Sophie En-Shen Lim7, Yi-Cheng Ng8, Wei-Guang Seetoh9, Azhar Ali10, Chay-Hoon Tan11, Hwee-Ling Koh12. 1. Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Science, National University of Singapore, 18 Science Drive 4, Singapore 117543, Singapore. Electronic address: yindividual@hotmail.com. 2. Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Science, National University of Singapore, 18 Science Drive 4, Singapore 117543, Singapore. Electronic address: youyiting1979@yahoo.com. 3. Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Science, National University of Singapore, 18 Science Drive 4, Singapore 117543, Singapore. Electronic address: phansy@nus.edu.sg. 4. Department of Paediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 119228, Singapore; Affiliated National University Cancer Institute, National University Health System, Singapore 119074, Singapore. Electronic address: paessv@nus.edu.sg. 5. Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Science, National University of Singapore, 18 Science Drive 4, Singapore 117543, Singapore. Electronic address: lew_simin@hotmail.com. 6. Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Science, National University of Singapore, 18 Science Drive 4, Singapore 117543, Singapore. Electronic address: shunweinicole@gmail.com. 7. Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Science, National University of Singapore, 18 Science Drive 4, Singapore 117543, Singapore. Electronic address: clairesophie1992@yahoo.com.sg. 8. Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Science, National University of Singapore, 18 Science Drive 4, Singapore 117543, Singapore. Electronic address: yicheng92@hotmail.com. 9. Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Science, National University of Singapore, 18 Science Drive 4, Singapore 117543, Singapore. Electronic address: wgseetoh@gmail.com. 10. Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, 14 Medical Drive, Singapore 117599, Singapore. Electronic address: csiazhar@nus.edu.sg. 11. Department of Pharmacology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, 16 Medical Drive, Block MD3, #04-01S, Singapore 117600, Singapore. Electronic address: chay_hoon_tan@nuhs.edu.sg. 12. Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Science, National University of Singapore, 18 Science Drive 4, Singapore 117543, Singapore. Electronic address: phakohhl@nus.edu.sg.
Abstract
ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: The extensive biodiversity of plants in Southeast Asia and inadequate research hitherto warrant a continued investigation into medicinal plants. On the basis of a careful review of fresh medicinal plant usage to treat cancer from previous ethnobotanical interviews in Singapore and from the traditional uses of the indigenous plants, fresh leaves of seven locally grown medicinal plant species were evaluated for anti-proliferative activity. AIM OF THE STUDY: To evaluate the anti-proliferative activity of local medicinal plant species Clausena lansium Skeels, Clinacanthus nutans (Burm. f.) Lindau, Leea indica (Burm. f.) Merr., Pereskia bleo (Kunth) DC., Strobilanthes crispus (L.) Blume, Vernonia amygdalina Delile and Vitex trifolia L. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Fresh, healthy and mature leaves of the seven medicinal plants were harvested from various locations in Singapore and Malaysia for Soxhlet, ultrasonication and maceration extractions in three different solvents (water, ethanol and methanol). Cell proliferation assay using water soluble tetrazolium salt (WST-1) assay was performed on twelve human cancer cell lines derived from breast (MDA-MB-231, T47D), cervical (C33A), colon (HCT116), leukemia (U937), liver (HepG2, SNU-182, SNU-449), ovarian (OVCAR-5, PA-1, SK-OV-3) and uterine (MES-SA/DX5) cancer. RESULTS: A total of 37 fresh leaf extracts from seven medicinal plants were evaluated for their anti-tumour activities in twelve human cancer cell lines. Of these, the extracts of C. lansium, L. indica, P. bleo, S. crispus, V. amygdalina and V. trifolia exhibited promising anti-proliferative activity against multiple cancer cell lines. Further investigation of selected promising leaf extracts indicated that maceration methanolic extract of L. indica was most effective overall against majority of the cancer cell lines, with best IC50 values of 31.5 ± 11.4 µg/mL, 37.5 ± 0.7 µg/mL and 43.0 ± 6.2 µg/mL in cervical C33A, liver SNU-449, and ovarian PA-1 cancer cell lines, respectively. CONCLUSION: The results of this study provide new scientific evidence for the traditional use of local medicinal plant species C. lansium, L . indica, P. bleo, S. crispus, V. amygdalina and V. trifolia in cancer treatment. These results highlight the importance of the upkeep of these indigenous plants in modern society and their relevance as resources for drug discovery.
ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: The extensive biodiversity of plants in Southeast Asia and inadequate research hitherto warrant a continued investigation into medicinal plants. On the basis of a careful review of fresh medicinal plant usage to treat cancer from previous ethnobotanical interviews in Singapore and from the traditional uses of the indigenous plants, fresh leaves of seven locally grown medicinal plant species were evaluated for anti-proliferative activity. AIM OF THE STUDY: To evaluate the anti-proliferative activity of local medicinal plant species Clausena lansium Skeels, Clinacanthus nutans (Burm. f.) Lindau, Leea indica (Burm. f.) Merr., Pereskia bleo (Kunth) DC., Strobilanthes crispus (L.) Blume, Vernonia amygdalina Delile and Vitex trifolia L. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Fresh, healthy and mature leaves of the seven medicinal plants were harvested from various locations in Singapore and Malaysia for Soxhlet, ultrasonication and maceration extractions in three different solvents (water, ethanol and methanol). Cell proliferation assay using water soluble tetrazolium salt (WST-1) assay was performed on twelve humancancer cell lines derived from breast (MDA-MB-231, T47D), cervical (C33A), colon (HCT116), leukemia (U937), liver (HepG2, SNU-182, SNU-449), ovarian (OVCAR-5, PA-1, SK-OV-3) and uterine (MES-SA/DX5) cancer. RESULTS: A total of 37 fresh leaf extracts from seven medicinal plants were evaluated for their anti-tumour activities in twelve humancancer cell lines. Of these, the extracts of C. lansium, L. indica, P. bleo, S. crispus, V. amygdalina and V. trifolia exhibited promising anti-proliferative activity against multiple cancer cell lines. Further investigation of selected promising leaf extracts indicated that maceration methanolic extract of L. indica was most effective overall against majority of the cancer cell lines, with best IC50 values of 31.5 ± 11.4 µg/mL, 37.5 ± 0.7 µg/mL and 43.0 ± 6.2 µg/mL in cervical C33A, liver SNU-449, and ovarian PA-1 cancer cell lines, respectively. CONCLUSION: The results of this study provide new scientific evidence for the traditional use of local medicinal plant species C. lansium, L . indica, P. bleo, S. crispus, V. amygdalina and V. trifolia in cancer treatment. These results highlight the importance of the upkeep of these indigenous plants in modern society and their relevance as resources for drug discovery.
Authors: Shahenur Alam Sakib; Abu Montakim Tareq; Ameerul Islam; Ahmed Rakib; Mohammad Nazmul Islam; Mohammad Arafat Uddin; Md Masudur Rahman; Veronique Seidel; Talha Bin Emran Journal: Plants (Basel) Date: 2021-05-27