Investigation on the Inhibitory Effects of Hydro-alcoholic Extract of Thymbra spicata on the Growth of Lung Cancer Cell Line SK-Mes-1

Lung cancer is one of the main causes of death among cancers worldwide. Since the most of current treatments for cancer are inefficient and have several side effects, finding an effective and alternative treatment has a great importance. To this end, medicinal plants have gained a special significance in recent years. The aim of this study was to examine the inhibitory effects of hydro-alcoholic extract of Thymbra spicata on the growth of lung cancer cell line SK-Mes-1. After cultivation of SK-MES-1 cells, these cells were treated with the several doses of hydro-alcoholic extract of Thymbra spicata for 24, 48, 72 hours to quantify IC50 value. After treatment, MTT was performed. Furthermore, to evaluate DNA fragmentation, DNA was extracted 24 hours after treatment and electrophoresis was done on agarose 1%. The results of MTT indicated that this extract has a dose-dependent cytotoxic effect on SSK-MES-1 cells. IC50 of this extract was determined as 110 microgram/ ml for SK-MES-1 cells. MTT results at 48 and 72 hours had a no significant difference with 24 hours. Also, treatment with this extract had no any effect on DNA fragmentation. Discussion & Results of this study indicated that hydro-alcoholic extract of Thymbra spicata could inhibit the growth of lung cancer cell SK-MES-1 through direct cytotoxic effects. Further studies are suggested to be conducted on cell growth pathways to determine the molecular mechanisms of this inhibitory effect.