Ethyl Acetate Extracts of Two Artemisia Species: Analyses of Phenolic Profile and Anticancer Activities Against SW-480 Colon Cancer Cells

Abstract

Because Artemisia vulgaris L. and Artemisia alba Turra are traditional medicinal plants used for the treatment of different diseases, we evaluated the cytotoxic/apoptotic activity of ethyl acetate extracts from these natural products against human colon cancer cells SW-480. The extracts contained a large amount of the total polyphenols and flavonoids. The phenolic profile showed the presence of phenolic acids (gallic, p-coumaric, vanillic, and ferulic acids) and flavonoids (rutin, myricetin, luteolin, quercetin, and apigenin). 3-[4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay indicated that antiproliferative activities of both A. vulgaris and A. alba extracts increased with the extension of time exposure, with decreasing IC 50 values. Mitomycin C (MMC) alone had antiproliferative activity, but in combination with plant extracts caused stronger effect with lower IC 50 values. Flow cytometry analyses showed that A. alba extract induced higher percentage of SW-480 cells in the early stage of apoptosis (33.5 ± 1.6 vs 0.7 ± 0.1, P < 0.05), whereas the A. vulgaris extract significantly increased the percentage of cells in necrosis (82.4 ± 5.0 vs 53.9 ± 2.3, P < 0.05). In conclusion, A. alba extract can be considered a potential source of bioactive components with anticancer activity or be used as a dietary food supplement or supplement to chemotherapy due to its synergistic effect with the MMC.

The cytotoxic and apoptotic effects of wild and polyploidy genotype of Artemisia cina extracts on the WiDr colon and HTB-183 lung cancer cell lines

“…Study on ethyl acetate extract of A. vulgaris L. and A. alba Turra showed that antiproliferative activities increased with time exposure. Both extracts contained phenolic compounds and flavonoids (Jakovljević et al 2019). The dichloromethane fraction of ethanol eluate of A. sacrorum Ledeb showed the most vigorous cytotoxic activities on HepG2, 49.76 and 28.51 µg/mL, respectively.…”

“…The three compounds may cause cytotoxic ability, but there are other compounds that we did not measure in this study. Jakovljević et al (2019) reported that an ethyl acetate extract of A. vulgaris and A. alba, which showed the antiproliferative activities, contained phenolic compounds that included phenolic acids (gallic, p-coumaric, vanillic, and ferulic acids), beside flavonoids included rutin, myricetin, luteolin, quercetin, and apigenin. Wang et al (2012) stated that there are various anticancer compounds, including kaempferol and triterpenoids.…”

Metabolomic and transcriptomic analyses provide insights into variations in flavonoids contents between two Artemisia cultivars

“…For example, artemisinin, the most well-known antimalarial medicine, is derived from A. annua [6]. Many other phytochemicals, such as essential oils [7], flavonoids [8], terpenoids [8], phenolic acids [9], lignans [10], coumarins [10], organic acids [11], alkaloids [12], and tannins [13] are found in Artemisia species, which are thus a rich source of potentially medicinally or nutritionally beneficial bioactive compounds.…”

Metabolomic and Transcriptional Analysis Provides Insights into Flavonoids Variation between two Artemisia Cultivars

“…For example，artemisinin, the most famous medicine used for antimalarial treatment, is derived from A.annua [5]. Except that, many other phytochemicals, such as essential oils [6], flavonoids [7], terpenoids [7], phenolic acids [8], lignans coumarins [9], organic acids [10], alkaloids [11], tannin [12], and other groups of metabolites were found in Artemisia species. Previous evidence showed that many ingredients have pharmacological activities including antioxidant [13][14], antiobesity [14], anti-inflammatory [14], antifungal [15], antibacterial [16], and anticoagulation [17] activities, etc.…”