Cytotoxicity Effect of Hull-Less Seed Pumpkin Extract on Human Papillary Thyroid Cancer Cell Line

Thyroid cancer is the most prevalent endocrine malignancy tumor, and its incidence is increasing. Chemotherapy drugs like Paclitaxel (PTX) are a common treatment for cancer; however, they have many adverse effects. Plants are a source of anticancer agents. The present study assessed the cytotoxic effects of hydro-alcoholic extract in comparison with those of paclitaxel on Papillary Thyroid Cancer (PTC) cell line.

PTC cell line was treated by different concentrations of extract and paclitaxel for 24, 48, and 72 h. Cytotoxicity was examined through Trypan blue and clonogenic assays. Acridine Orange/Ethidium Bromide (AO/EB) staining was used for detecting apoptotic cells. The observations were statistically tabulated and analyzed. 

The Trypan blue staining results suggested that hydro-alcoholic extract had a cytotoxic effect on PTC cells. Our results of AO/EB staining revealed that the hydro-alcoholic extract of Hull-Less Seed Pumpkin (HLSP) in the concentration of ≥100 μl/mL induced significant apoptosis in the PTC cultured cell (P<0.05). In addition, the AO/EB staining data suggested an increase in the number of apoptotic cells with increasing the concentration of extract and paclitaxel. The clonogenic assay results indicated a decrease in colonies by increasing the concentration. Comparing the groups treated by paclitaxel or HLSP extract, with the control group revealed significant differences between them (P<0.05).

The HLSP extract had a cytotoxic effect on the human PTC cell line. Based on the adverse effects of chemotherapy drugs, this extract can be considered as a beneficial agent for PTC treatment.