Evaluating Cytotoxic Potential of the Fruit and the Leaf Extracts of Sambucus ebulus on MCF7 and AGS Cell Lines

Breast and stomach cancers are the most common malignancies in Iranian females and males, respectively. Enriching with phytochemicals that have antioxidant and cytotoxic activities, extracts from dwarf elder (Sambucus ebulus L.) holds promises to be used for alternative medication.

We investigated the cytotoxic and antiproliferative activities of the leaf and the fruit ethyl-acetate (EA), as well as the methanolic (MeOH) extracts of dwarf elder upon treatment of the MCF-7 and AGS cells. Twenty-seven concentration series ranging from 10 to 2000 μg/mL were administered to the cells, and their growth inhibitory potential was assessed using MTT assay. The potential anticancer compounds of the extracts were quantified applying an improved highperformance liquid chromatography (HPLC).

All extracts showed positive dose-dependent cytotoxic activities on both cell lines. The EA extracts demonstrated more cytotoxicity compared to those of the MeOH ones (P<0.0001). The leaf EA extract showed IC50 values of 65 and 50 μg/mL, while those of the fruit were estimated as 58 and 50 μg/mL on the MCF-7 and AGS cells, respectively. The AGS cell line showed more susceptibility to all extracts tested compared to the MCF-7. MeOH extracts caused only a maximum of ~20% reduction in cell viability at 2000 μg/mL concentration. According to the HPLC analysis, leaf extracts contained phenolic compounds, including p- coumaric acid (0.10 mg per g powder), rutin (0.07 mg per g powder), and quercetin (0.02 mg per g powder).

EA extract of the fruit shows the highest cytotoxicity: reducing 35.3% viability of the AGS cells with 10 μg/mL concentration. It can be considered a potential chemopreventive agent for cancer therapies. However, MeOH extracts with far low cytotoxicity or non-cytotoxic at some concentrations would be an appropriate candidate for preventing tumor growth without affecting neighboring normal cells.