Evaluating the anti-proliferative effects of methanol and butanol extracts of lobostemon fruticosus on a pancreatic cancer cell line AsPC-1
Date
2017
Authors
Blose, Malangu Sibusiso
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Abstract
Cancer has become a problematic fatal disease in developing and industrialised countries with
pancreatic cancer as the seventh leading cause of cancer-related deaths, with an average survival rate
of less than 5%. Environmental risk factors associated with pancreatic cancer include smoking,
obesity, diet, alcohol etc. Furthermore, pancreatic cancer is commonly diagnosed at a late stage where
its response to current anti-cancer agents is poor. Consequently, with South Africa being a 3rd world
country and the cost of chemotherapy being so high, this has led to us trying to identify new, cheaper
therapeutics for cancer cells. A majority (80%) of the South African population relies on traditional
medicines, hence in this study we aimed to assess Lobostemon fruticosus for anti-proliferative effects
on pancreatic cancer cell line (AsPC-1). This was achieved by the use of methanol and butanol
extracts of L. fruticosus to screen for induction of apoptosis and inhibition of cell proliferation. The
plant was collected, dried, crushed and dissolved in butanol and methanol to obtain experimental
extracts. Cytotoxicity of the plant on Aspc-1 was determined using MTT Assay, xCELLigence and
cell cycle analysis. MRC-5 cell line was used as a positive control cell line. L. fruticosus extracts
induced cell death at IC50 of 60µg/ml (methanol extract) and 50µg/ml (butanol extract) at 48hour
treatments on AsPC-1 cell line. Western Blots showed that the methanol and butanol extracts of L.
fruticosus led to slight upregulation of the apoptotic gene p53 in AsPC-1 cell line, which was further
confirmed by FACS apoptosis detection. Cell cycle analysis further showed the plant extracts do
promote cell cycle arrest. LC/MS of the extracts gave spectra of active compounds presumed to play a
role in induction of apoptosis on the pancreatic cancer cell line.
The data obtained implies that the methanol and butanol extracts of L. fruticosus does have, to a
certain extent, growth inhibiting and apoptosis inducing potential on the pancreatic cancer cell line.
KEYWORDS: Lobostemon fruticosus, Pancreatic Cancer, methanol extract, butanol extract, AsPC-1
Description
A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Masters of Science.
February 2017.
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Citation
Blose, Malangu Sibusiso (2017) Evaluating the anti-proliferative effects of methanol and butanol extracts of lobostemon fruticosus on a pancreatic cancer cell line AsPC-1, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, <http://hdl.handle.net/10539/23561>