The Effect of Herbal Medicine on Colon Cancer Cells in Culture ^†

Abstract

Medicinal herbs are being increasingly recognized as useful complementary treatments for cancer. Colon cancer is the third most common cancer in men and the second in women worldwide. Colon cancer diseases is very heterogeneous in terms of grade, genetics, ploidy, and oncogene/tumor suppress or gene expression and its biological, hormonal, and molecular characteristics are extremely complex. In this study our aim was to identify the effect of different medical plants Viscum album, Inula viscosa, Hypericum perforatum, Lysimachia nummularia, Oleocanthal, Pinus pinaster and Rubus caeisus on colon cancer cell line. Colo320 cancer cells and human adipose tissue derived mesenchymal stem cell were analysed for four medical plants in culture. Firstly, the cytotoxicity rate (IC50) determined by MTT. After that, immunocytochemical staining were done eNOS, VEGF and TUNEL method for apoptosis. The stainings were evaluated by H-score. As a result, Inula viscosa and Rubus caeisus have a higher inhibitory effect on cell proliferation and apoptosis in both cancers than the other medicinal plants. Colo320 cancer cells expressed strong eNOS by these plants and also both plants were not toxic for adipose tissue derived mesenchymal stem cells.