Effect of Chloroform Fraction of Tribulus Terrestris (TT) Fruit on Proliferation, Apoptosis and Cell Cycle Arrest of AGS Cancer Cell Line

Background and Adenocarcinoma gastric cancer is one of the most common cancers of upper gastrointestinal tract. Many natural compounds are known to have anti-tumor activities through induction of tumor cell apoptosis. Tribulus terrestris is a plant with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects that has been recommended in the world and Iranian traditional medicine. These effects have been proven in some recent studies. This study was performed to evaluate the anti-tumoral effect of chloroform fraction fruit of Tribulus terrestris (TT) on human adenocarcinoma gastric cancer. In this experimental study, AGS cells were first cultured in standard conditions in plate and then incubated with different concentrations of chloroform fraction for 24, 48 and 72 hours. Cell viability was determined using MTT assay. Cell death induction and cell cycle arrest were determined using flow cytometry. The results demonstrated that the chloroform fraction decreased AGS cell viability in a concentration and time-dependent manner. The data indicate that this fraction increased apoptosis effectively in AGS cell line and cell cycle was arrested at G0/G1 phase. The effective compounds of the chloroform fraction of the plant Tribulus terrestris (TT) fruit induced apoptotic cell death in human gastric cancer cells. These compounds could be of great benefit in prevention or treatment of human gastric cancer.