Abstract
The search for novel, safe and effective anticancer agents has been a continuous and recurring objective in cancer research. Olax subscorpioidea is a medicinal plant used for ethnomedicinal treatment of cancer in Nigeria. In this study, we investigated the cytotoxic, anti-mitotic and cytogenetic effects of methanol extracts of the leaves and stems of O. subscorpioidea. The cytotoxic activities were evaluated against brine shrimps (Artemia salina) nauplii and Allium cepa roots, while anti-mitotic and cytogenetic effects were assessed on Allium cepa meristematic cells. Cytotoxicity assays showed that the extracts demonstrated potent cytotoxic activities, having LC50 values of 10.7 and 45.2 µg/mL against brine shrimps and IC50 values in the range of 47.03 – 81.93 µg/mL on A. cepa roots. These activities were comparable to that of potassium dichromate and methotrexate used as positive control in each of the assays. Anti-mitotic results indicated that at a concentration of 10 µg/mL, the extracts demonstrated percentage mitotic inhibition (% M.I) of 35.95 – 70.12%, with greater or similar anti-mitotic effects to methotrexate at a concentration of 125 µg/mL, % M.I of 39.04 – 40.64%. Cytogenetic investigation revealed that the extracts showed chromosomal aberrations that were not considerably different from those observed in the negative control group. The current findings suggest that the plant extracts may contain cytotoxic and anti-mitotic compounds. Further research to investigate these extracts in more sophisticated test systems and to isolate and characterize their active principles is ongoing.
Highlights
Cancer constitutes a major obstacle to human development and well-being
The present study investigates the in vitro cytotoxic, anti-mitotic and cytogenetic properties of the methanol extracts of the leaves and stems of O. subscorpioidea against Artemia salina nauplii and Allium cepa meristematic cells
The results of root growth inhibition study of the extracts of O. subscorpioidea leaves and stems using A. cepa assay are as presented in Fig. 2, which shows the root growth (%) of A. cepa after 24 and 48 h treatment with the extracts at different concentrations and methotrexate
Summary
Cancer constitutes a major obstacle to human development and well-being. Latest statistics indicate that, two out of ten people; one in five men and one in sixA.R. Cancer constitutes a major obstacle to human development and well-being. Two out of ten people; one in five men and one in six. Ogunlaja identified as being central to reducing or reversing the rise in cancer burden (Chan, 2014) This sentiment is shared by the United Nations, which described cancer prevention as the cornerstone of global cancer control (United Nations General Assembly, 2011). The need for improvement in preventive measures is important, in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs), in which 60% of cancer cases and 75% of cancer deaths were recorded, a disproportionate index as opposed to a mere 5% of global spending on cancer (Farmer et al, 2010)
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