In vitro anticancer activity of methanolic extract of Granulocystopsis sp., a microalgae from an oligotrophic oasis in the Chihuahuan desert

Abstract

With the purpose of discovering new anticancer molecules that might have fewer side effects or reduce resistance to current antitumor drugs, a bioprospecting study of the microalgae of the Cuatro Cienegas Basin (CCB), an oasis in the Chihuahuan desert in Mexico was conducted. A microalgae was identified as Granulocystopsis sp. through sequencing the rbcL gene and reconstruction of a phylogenetic tree, and its anticancer activities were assessed using various in vitro assays and different cell lines of human cancers, including lung, skin melanoma, colorectal, breast and prostatic cancers, as well as a normal cell line. The values of IC50 of the microalgae methanolic extract using the MTT assay were lower than 20 μg/ml, except that in the lung cancer line and the normal cell line. In vitro, the microalgae extract caused the loss of membrane integrity, monitored by the trypan blue exclusion test and exhibited marked inhibition of adhesion and cell proliferation in cancer cell lines, through the evaluation of the clonogenic assay. Also, typical nuclear changes of apoptotic processes were observed under the microscope, using the dual acridine orange/ethidium bromide fluorescent staining. Finally, the microalgae extract increased the activity of caspases 3 and 7 in skin melanoma, colon, breast and prostate cancer cells, in the same way as the apoptotic inductor and powerful antitumoral drug, doxorubicin. This study shows the anticancer activity from Granulocystopsis sp., a microalgae isolated from the CCB.

Effect of Hydroalcoholic Extract of Ephedra major, Momordica charantia, and Resveratrol on Cytotoxicity and Caspase-3 Genes Expression Level in MCF-7 Breast Cancer Cell Line

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Okra (Abelmoschus Esculentus) as a Potential Dietary Medicine with Nutraceutical Importance for Sustainable Health Applications

“…Cancer is the second-leading cause of death globally, and despite the advances in drug development, it is still necessary to develop new plant-derived medicines. There is an urgent need for new anticancer drugs, because cancerous cells are developing resistances against the currently available drugs, like vinca alkaloids and taxanes [ 56 , 57 ].…”

A Comparative Study of Diospyros malabarica (Gaub) Extracts in Various Polarity-Dependent Solvents for Evaluation of Phytoconstituents and Biological Activities

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