Anti-proliferative Activity of Crude Extract and Fractions Obtained from Digera muricata on HeLa Cell Lines of Human Cervix and A549 Cell Lines of Human Lung

Abstract

Aim: Digera muricata (linn.) of family amaranthaceae is an ethanobotanically important plant species traditionally used against various disorders. Materials and Methods: Cytotoxic potential of methanolic extract and its fractions were investigated against hela and a 549 cell lines. Crude extract of D. muricata was prepared in methanol by continuous hot soxhlation technique. Crude extract was fractionated into two organic and one aqueous fraction by the help of column chromatography. 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2yl)-2,4 diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay was used to evaluate the reduction of viability of the cancer cell lines. Cell viability was inhibited by crude extract of D . muricata in a dose dependent manner ranging from 25 µg/ml to 250 µg/ml. Results: apoptosis assays using nucleic acid stains namely propidium iodide (PI) exclusion assay and hoestch/PI assay were performed by the help of fluorescence microscopy. Morphological analysis was done by calculation of apoptotic ratio and percentage apoptosis. Conclusion: Our results suggest that methanolic and aqueous fraction of the extract of D . muricata can be a good source of cytotoxic compounds.