Persea declinata (Bl.) Kosterm Bark Crude Extract Induces Apoptosis in MCF‐7 Cells via G₀/G₁ Cell Cycle Arrest, Bcl‐2/Bax/Bcl‐xl Signaling Pathways, and ROS Generation

Abstract

Persea declinata (Bl.) Kosterm is a member of the Lauraceae family, widely distributed in Southeast Asia. It is from the same genus with avocado (Persea americana Mill), which is widely consumed as food and for medicinal purposes. In the present study, we examined the anticancer properties of Persea declinata (Bl.) Kosterm bark methanolic crude extract (PDM). PDM exhibited a potent antiproliferative effect in MCF-7 human breast cancer cells, with an IC50 value of 16.68 µg/mL after 48 h of treatment. We observed that PDM caused cell cycle arrest and subsequent apoptosis in MCF-7 cells, as exhibited by increased population at G0/G1 phase, higher lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release, and DNA fragmentation. Mechanistic studies showed that PDM caused significant elevation in ROS production, leading to perturbation of mitochondrial membrane potential, cell permeability, and activation of caspases-3/7. On the other hand, real-time PCR and Western blot analysis showed that PDM treatment increased the expression of the proapoptotic molecule, Bax, but decreased the expression of prosurvival proteins, Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL, in a dose-dependent manner. These findings imply that PDM could inhibit proliferation in MCF-7 cells via cell cycle arrest and apoptosis induction, indicating its potential as a therapeutic agent worthy of further development.

Deglucose chikusetsusaponin IVa isolated from Rhizoma Panacis Majoris induces apoptosis in human HepG2 hepatoma cells

“…Rice bran phytic acid was reported to induce apoptosis via regulation of Bcl-2/Bax in HepG2 cells (22) and Persea declinata (Bl.) Kosterm bark methanolic crude extract induced cell apoptosis through upregulation of Bax and downregulation of Bcl-1 in human breast cancer cells (23). In the present study, it was further demonstrated that treatment with DCIVa activated the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway.…”

DNA hypomethylation concomitant with the overproduction of ROS induced by naphthoquinone juglone on tobacco BY-2 suspension cells

“…This phenomenon was demonstrated on human endothelial cells and further investigations in plants are necessary. ROS are known to be able to induce cell cycle arrest, which leads to the inhibition of growth (Guo et al, 2014Narrima et al, 2014. However, this effect has been shown on animal (tumor) cell line models and cannot be automatically applied on plant cells despite the fact that we observed inhibition of growth in a concentration-dependent manner.…”

Naturally Available Extracts Inhibiting Cancer Progression: A Systematic Review

“…Many of the current studies have demonstrated the ability of natural extracts to inhibit the growth and proliferation of cancer cells. 1 – 34 …”