A
recent study conducted on 30 medicinal plant extracts from the hills of
Darjeeling has concluded that five among them have cancer curing
properties. The research was conducted under the aegis of the BMC
Complementary and Alternative Medicine 2015.
Ethanolic leaf extracts from the 30
plants were tested for their cytotoxicity against human breast
adenocarcinoma cell line (MCF 7), human hepatocarcinoma cell line
(HepG2) and human cervix adenocarcinoma cell line (HeLa). Cytotoxicity
levels were evaluated by performing MTT assay, trypan blue exclusion
assay and morphological assessment under phase contrast inverted
microscope. For the extracts that tested positive, IC50 (the
concentration that inhibits cell growth by 50 per cent) was calculated.
The extracts were further subjected to Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC)
to determine their phytochemical profile.
As a result, five of the extracts,
namely Artemisia Indica (Japanese Magwort or Titeypati), Eupatorium
Odoratum (bitter bush/tonka bean), Eupatorium Adenophorum (small daisy),
Maesa Macrophylla (big-leafed Magnolia) and Phlogacanthus Thyrsiformis
(Nongmangkha) showed a 50 per cent capability of inhibiting cancer cell
line growth at concentrations of 50gm/ml.
The five leaf extracts were then
screened for their cytotoxic activity against three human cancerous cell
lines - MCF7, HeLa and HepG2. Maesa Macrophylla (big-leaf Magnolia),
comprising multiple known biologically active compounds, significantly
inhibited the growth of HeLa and MCF7 cancerous cell lines.
Variations in climate, geographical
location and rich ethno-medicinal tradition have made the Darjeeling
hills an invaluable repository of traditional medicinal plants, the
researchers noted. The study may provide the platform for further
exploration of M. Macrophylla for its potent anticancer constituents,
they added. (HS)
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