Unveiling the anticancer, antimicrobial, antioxidative properties, and UPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS/ GC–MS metabolite profile of the lipophilic extract of siam weed (Chromolaena odorata)

Abstract

There has been growing interest in the biological and pharmacological potential of C. odorata in recent times. While a number of reports had highlighted the beneficial attributes of various extracts prepared from C. odorata, the biological properties of the lipophilic extract remained unexplored. This work aimed at examining the anticancer, antimicrobial and antioxidant properties of C. odorata aerial part lipophilic extract (COLE). The results revealed that COLE possessed potent and selective anticancer properties against human breast and colon cancer cells. The extract presented strong cytotoxic activity against MCF-7 cells (IC50 of 9.18 µg/mL), MDA-MB-231 (IC50 of 12.19 µg/mL), HT-29 (IC50 of 19.48 µg/mL), and HCT-116 cells (IC50 of 14.12 µg/mL). Meanwhile, COLE was found to be non-toxic at the concentrations tested against normal (HEK-293 and CCD-841 CoN) cells. In addition, COLE demonstrated significant antibacterial activity against B. cereus (MIC value of 0.157 mg/mL), and moderate activity against L. monocytogenes (MIC value of 0.63 mg/mL) and E. coli (MIC value of 1.06 mg/mL). Furthermore, COLE effectively scavenged free radical species, including ABTṠ+ (IC50 of 46.80 µg/mL), DPPḢ (IC50 of 27.78 µg/mL), and superoxide anion (IC50 of 64.07 µg/mL), likely due to the high phenolic (262.48 mg gallic acid equivalent/g) and flavonoid content (70.20 mg quercetin equivalent/g). UPLC-MS analysis revealed the putative identities of 85 secondary metabolites whereas the GC–MS analysis detected 36 volatile constituents in COLE. Also, it was revealed that terpenes and phenolic compounds were the predominant specialized metabolites present in COLE, and putatively responsible for the remarkable biological properties. Taken together, these results revealed the richness of C. odorata lipophilic extract in terms of its metabolite profile and biological activities. In conclusion, COLE is worthy of further investigation to take advantage of its good anticancer, antioxidative and antimicrobial properties in pharmacological or nutraceutical application.