The Essential Oil of Cymbopogon citratus Stapt and Carvacrol: An Approach of the Antitumor Effect on 7,12-Dimethylbenz-[α]-anthracene (DMBA)-Induced Breast Cancer in Female Rats.

Juan Pedro Rojas-Armas,James Calva,Oscar Herrera-Calderón,Américo Castro-Luna,Agustín Rojas-Armas,Jorge Luis Arroyo-Acevedo,José Manuel Ortiz-Sánchez,Miriam Palomino-Pacheco,Julio Hilario-Vargas

doi:10.3390/molecules25143284

Abstract

C. citratus essential oil and carvacrol have shown an antitumor effect on breast tumor cell lines; the main objective of this research was to evaluate the antitumor effect of the essential oil of Cymbopogon citratus (EOCc) and carvacrol on 7,12-dimethylbenz [a] anthracene (DMBA)-induced breast cancer in female rats. Cancer was induced by a single administration of DMBA at dose of 80 mg/kg body weight (BW). A total of 54 female Holtzman rats were randomly assigned into 9 groups (n = 6). Group I: PS (Physiological saline); Group II: DMBA; Groups III, IV, and V: DMBA + EOCc at doses of 50, 100 and 200 mg/kg/day BW, respectively; Groups VI, VII, and VIII: DMBA + carvacrol at doses of 50, 100 and 200 mg/kg/day BW, respectively; and group IX: DMBA + EOCc + carvacrol at doses of 100 mg/kg/day BW. The treatment lasted 14 weeks. As results, EOCc showed a reduction in tumors as well as necrosis and mitosis. Animals treated with carvacrol did not show necrosis, mitosis, or infiltration. Carvacrol at dose of 100 mg/kg/day BW revealed a significant decrease in the cumulative tumor volume down to 0.11 ± 0.05 cm3 compared to 0.38 ± 0.04 cm3 of the DMBA group (p < 0.01). It is concluded that EOCc and carvacrol had an antitumor effect on DMBA-induced breast cancer in female rats.

Highlights

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women worldwide, and accounts for 16%of all female cancers; the incidence varies widely across different parts of the world, with age-standardized rates of up to 99.4 per 100,000 in North America, while in Eastern Europe, South America, South Africa, and Western Asia have moderate incidents, but are increasing yearly [1].This type of cancer is the most common in Latin America and the Caribbean women, both in the number of new cases and deaths; in 2012, more than 408,000 women were diagnosed with breast cancer in this region, and 92,000 have died from this disease
Treatment with the essential oil of Cymbopogon citratus (EOCc) decreased the percentage of necrosis and mitosis group (Table 3, Figure 5B)
We concluded that the essential oil of C. citratus (EOCc) and carvacrol had an antitumor effect independent of the doses

Summary

Introduction

Of all female cancers; the incidence varies widely across different parts of the world, with age-standardized rates of up to 99.4 per 100,000 in North America, while in Eastern Europe, South America, South Africa, and Western Asia have moderate incidents, but are increasing yearly [1]. This type of cancer is the most common in Latin America and the Caribbean women, both in the number of new cases and deaths; in 2012, more than 408,000 women were diagnosed with breast cancer in this region, and 92,000 have died from this disease. DMBA (7,12-dimethylbenz-[α]-anthracene) is a commercial chemical agent used to induce breast cancer in preclinical models by activating cellular cytosolic receptor aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR)

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