Abstract 129: Effect of punicic acid on MCF7 breast cancer cells

Abstract

Abstract The pomegranate fruit has long been recognized for its health benefits in a wide range of chronic diseases. Components of pomegranate seed extracts (PSOs) have been shown to have antioxidant, anti-glycemic, and antimicrobial activity, and recent research has demonstrated that PSOs can inhibit the growth of select cancers in vitro. One of the main components of PSO is punicic acid, an omega-5 fatty acid that is capable of inhibiting breast and prostate cancer cell proliferation, although the mechanisms of action are not yet known. In order to further understand its potential anti-cancer properties, we investigated the effect of punicic acid on proliferation and viability of human MCF7 breast cancer cells. Cells were treated with various concentrations of punicic acid (between 10 and 100ug/ml) for up to 72 hours, and various endpoints were measured including cell proliferation, cytotoxicity, and apoptosis. We found that all doses led to a significant reduction in cell viability based on an MTS assay. We also found a dose-dependent effect of punicic acid on cytotoxicity, as measured by an LDH release assay. Cell death was confirmed to be, at least in part, due to apoptosis, as detected by Annexin V and propidium iodide fluorescence. While 10 ug/ml punicic acid induced measurable cell death by 48 hours, higher concentrations were toxic to cells within the first 24 hours of treatment. Since many of the peroxiredoxin (Prdx) family of antioxidant proteins are known to involved in cancer cell survival, and our lab previously demonstrated their regulation in MCF7 cells, we examined the effect of punicic acid on Prdx expression. We found members of this gene family to be significantly elevated within 24 hours of punicic acid treatment. Altogether, our data definitively demonstrates anti-cancer properties of punicic acid, as well as its ability to regulate antioxidant gene expression in these cells. This research has important implications in the field of natural products as therapeutic options for cancer treatment, as opposed to conventional chemotherapy. Citation Format: Oluwafemi Gbayisomore, Hannah Klausner, Shelley A. Phelan. Effect of punicic acid on MCF7 breast cancer cells [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2022; 2022 Apr 8-13. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(12_Suppl):Abstract nr 129.