Antiproliferative effect of extracts from Aristolochia baetica and Origanum compactum on human breast cancer cell line MCF-7

Abstract

Aristolochia baetica L. (Aristolochiaceae) and Origanum compactum Benth. (Lamiaceae) are native plants of Morocco used in traditional medicine. In order to systematically evaluate their potential activity on human breast cancer, four different polarity extracts from each plant were assessed in vitro for their antiproliferative effect on MCF-7 cells. As a result, several extracts of those plants showed potent cell proliferation inhibition on MCF-7 cells. Chloroform extract of A. baetica (IC50: 216.06 ± 15 μg/mL) and ethyl acetate of O. compactum (IC50: 279.51 ± 16 μg/mL) were the most active. Thin layer chromatography examination of the bioactive extracts of A. baetica and O. compactum showed the presence of aristolochic acid and betulinic acid, respectively. These results call for further studies of these extracts.

Keywords::

• Antiproliferative effect
• Aristolochia baetica
• MCF-7 cells
• MTT assay
• Origanum compactum

Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge Dr. M. Mimouni (Service des Laboratoires, Institut National d’Oncologie, Rabat, Maroc) for his helpful discussion and review of this article.

Declaration of interest

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest that could be perceived as prejudicing the impartiality of the research reported. This work was supported by EGIDE (Centre Français pour l’Accueil et les Echanges Internationaux).