Eryngium billardieri Extract and Fractions Induce Apoptosis in Cancerous Cells

Eryngium is a genus flowering plant in the Umbelliferae family, having pharmacological properties, such as anti-inflammatory and anti-diabetic. Given the nature of melanoma and breast cancers in recent years and the fact that the anti-cancer properties of Eryngium billardieri on mentioned cell lines have not been studied, the present study was conducted to explore these properties.

The mechanisms of cytotoxicity and apoptosis of aerial parts of various extracts and fractions of E. billardieri on cancerous cells and normal cells were investigated.

Samples were collected from natural habitats, dried and then extracted by Soxhlet apparatus with solvents of n-Hex, DCM and methanol, respectively. The cytotoxic effects of the extracts were investigated by the MTT method on MCF7, B16 and HFF-2 classes for 24 and 48 hours. Flow cytometry was also used to investigate the mechanism of cytotoxicity, and it has been confirmed by Real-time PCR of p53 and Bax genes as to which comprise the apoptosis regulatory proteins. Meanwhile, volatile compounds of extracts were identified by the GC-MS method.

The obtained data showed that the n-Hex extract of E. billardieri on B-16 and MCF7 cell lines and dichromethane extract on MCF7 cell line had the most significant cytotoxic effect compared to DMSO control (p-value <0.001). Our finding showed that the mechanism of n-Hex extract with 80% and 100% vlc fractions on B16 induced apoptotis compared to HFF-2 control cells; moreover, n-Hex extract and 80% vlc fraction on MCF7 were apoptotic. The major compounds of n-Hex, DCM, and 80% and 100% fractions of n-Hex extract obtained from GC-MS were non-terpenoid.

Non-terpenoid compounds of E. billardieri can be responsible for exhibiting the most cytotoxic effects on MCF7 and B16 cell lines with apoptotic mechanism, and n-Hex extract was found to have the most significant inhibitory effect on cancerous cells compared to the HFF-2 control cells by employing the mechanism of apoptosis.