Scutellaria orientalis subsp. Bornmuelleri: phytochemical composition and biological activities

The medicinal plant, Scutellaria orientalis, is used for the treatment of several diseases in North-western of Iran. The purpose of this study was to investigate the phytochemical content, cytotoxicity assay against SW-480 and HCT-116 cells and anti-haemolytic activities using HPLC-PDA, GC/MS, MTT and spectrophotometry methods, respectively. Phytochemical screening revealed the presence of different terpenoids and flavonoids such as baicalin, tricin and wogonin and also some of the other medicinally active compounds such as conhydrine and cannabidiol. MTT results revealed that HCT-116 cells were more sensitive to examined extracts compared with SW-480 cells. Methanol extract had the most anti-proliferative activity against HCT-116 and SW-480 cells at 48 h with IC50 values of 614.5 and 592.3 µg/mL, respectively. Also, all samples had no significant haemolytic effect on human erythrocytes. Our results revealed that S. orientalis root extract has a promising anticancer activity, indicating the presence of major anti-cancer agents on human colon cell lines.