Plants from the Bursera genus are widely distributed in the
tropical dry forests of Mexico. In traditional medicine, extracts from different
species of Bursera have been used for a wide range of
biological activities, including the treatment of cancer-related symptoms.
Compounds present in the Bursera genus include lignans,
flavonoids, steroids, short-chain aliphatic alkanes, acetates, alcohols,
ketones, and terpenoids. In some instances, secondary metabolites of these
classes of compounds may induce cytotoxicity, and therefore we sought to
investigate the effects of B. copallifera leaf extracts in
breast cancer cell lines to evaluate their potential therapeutic value for the
treatment of breast cancer, one of the most prevalent types of cancer in women
worldwide. Two B. copallifera leaf extracts exerted cytotoxic
effects on both the MCF7 and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell line models. The
cytotoxic effect was more evident in the MDA-MB-231 triple negative cell line
inhibiting also the migration of these cells. We identified hydroxycinnamic acid
and flavonol derivatives as major phenolic components of the extracts. Our
results strongly suggest a potential use of the Bursera leaf
extracts rich in phenolic compounds, their individual phenolic compounds, or
their combinations for the treatment of breast cancer.
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