In vitro anti-cancer activity of ethanolic extract of Momordica charantia on cervical and breast cancer cell lines

Abstract

Objectives: To estimate the total phenol content (TPC) of the ethanolic extract of Momordica charantia (EEMC) whole fruit and to study the cytotoxic activity of this extract against cell lines representing carcinomas of cervix and breast. Materials and Methods: Cervical and breast carcinoma cell lines (HeLa and MCF-7) were procured from National Center for Cell Sciences, Pune, and cultured in Dulbecco's modified eagle medium (DMEM) supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS) and 1 mM L-glutamine. EEMC was prepared by graded ethanol fractionation method and the TPC determined using Folin–Ciocalteu assay. For cytotoxicity studies, 5000 cells/well in 100 μl DMEM-10% FBS medium were seeded in a 96 well plate; and treated with increasing concentration of EEMC. Efficacy of EEMC was determined by measuring the cell number using sulforhodamine B assay. Percentage inhibition was calculated using dimethyl sulfoxide vehicle control. The IC (50) value was calculated from the plot of inhibition (%) in dose- and time-dependent manner using GraphPad PRISM software. Results: The total phenolic content of EEMC decreased with increasing ethanol concentration from 50% to 100%. Cytotoxicity studies identified 50% ethanolic extract as the most active fraction. A time- and dose-dependent increase in the efficacy of 50% ethanolic extract for inhibiting cervical and breast carcinoma cell growth was noticed. The IC (50) dose was 12.31 μg/ml and 0.769 μg/ml for 50% EEMC at 48 h incubation for HeLa and MCF-7 cell lines, respectively. Conclusion: The presence of high total phenolic acid content in 50% ethanolic extract indicates that the anti-cancer activity of Momordica charantia could be due to the secondary metabolites. Based on the IC (50) value we conclude that the 50% EEMC is more potent against breast cancer cell lines. Further studies are required to know the exact cause for the increase in cell inhibition at 48 h incubation than in 72 h.