Cell Viability Assessment by MTT After Treatment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells (HepG2) with Chelidonium majus

Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma is a type of cancer with a high mortality rate since it is primarily diagnosed in an advanced stage. Therefore, searching for therapies that help in this treatment becomes increasingly important. Therapies comprising Complementary Medicine have become more popular and have shown beneficial effects in treating various types of cancer. Homeopathy, a therapy established for more than 200 years to treat various diseases, has become the target of several studies, especially regarding chronic diseases, which are difficult to control by conventional medicine. This study evaluated the effect of the homeopathic dilution of Chelidonium majus D35 (1x10-35) in hepatocellular carcinoma cells (HepG2). Cells were cultivated in an oven at 37 ºC, 5% CO2, and then trypsinized and plated in 96-well plates for product addition. Chelidonium majus D35 was added in triplicate to each well at three different concentrations. The concentrations tested were 20, 40, and 60 µL/mL. After 48 hours of incubation with the product, cell viability was measured by MTT, and it was possible to observe a decrease in the groups that received the treatment compared to the control. A decrease in cell viability was recorded compared to the control of cells without treatment, indicating a cytotoxic effect of Chelidonium majus D35 on tumor cells. Different studies confirm this result due to the evaluation of biologically active compounds present in extracts of Chelidonium majus D35 that control cell proliferation and induce apoptosis. The results of the in vitro tests performed were satisfactory.