Antiproliferative activity of combination of Thai herbal remedy and chemotherapeutic agents on human cancer cell lines

Abstract

Thai herbal remedies have long been used as traditional medicine in Thailand for cancer therapy, however, little is known for their scientific information especially their anticancer effects. In this study, one commonly used Thai herbal remedy for cancer therapy, was demonstrated for its antiproliferative effect on 7 human cancer cell lines; MDA-MB435, SKBR3, MCF-7, T47D, A549, SK-LU1 and Caco-2. Combination of chemotherapeutic drugs and this special herbal remedy was also investigated. The results revealed that the Thai herbal extract alone had no effect on the growth of these 7 human cancer cell lines. The viability of all cancer cells was more than 80% after treated with 30 µg/ml of the extract. Cells treated with doxorubicin plus herbal remedy showed slightly different IC50 value when compared to doxorubicin alone on T47D human breast cancer cell line but no statistical significance. In conclusion, this herbal remedy that was used to treat cancer patients has no significant antiproliferative effect on cancer cells in vitro. Key words: MDA-MB435, SKBR3, MCF7, T47D, A549, SK-LU1, Caco-2, Thai herbal remedy.