Effect of Tetraselmis suecica microalgae isolated from the Persian Gulf on the expression level of AKT/mTOR genes in the liver cancer cell line, Huh7

The medicinal and therapeutic properties of microalgae, especially their anti-cancer properties in modulating cellular mechanisms such as cytotoxicity, reducing tumor cell invasion, and increasing apoptosis, have drawn attention to their therapeutic application in cancer. However, there are few reports on the effects of Tetraselmis suecica microalgae on liver cancer. As the aim of this study, after ethanolic extracting from T. suecica, and IC50 determination, the effect of T. suecica microalgae extract on cytotoxicity and apoptosis of Huh7 cells was investigated by MTT and Annexin V/PI staining, respectively. In addition, the expression of AKT/mTOR genes was measured by real-time PCR test. Based on the results, ethanolic extract of T. suecica to the Huh7 cell line significantly decreased the expression of AKT and mTOR genes compared to the control group. The vitality of cancer cells in concentrations of 500 and 1000 μg/ml of T. suecica extract in a 48-hour culture, decreased significantly. In addition, in the 72-hour treatment, a significant decrease in cell viability was observed in the concentrations of 250, 500, and 1000 μg/ml. According to the results, T. suecica microalgae can offer good benefits as valuable natural materials for the pharmaceutical industry, especially anticancer drugs.