Polyphenolic Compounds of Crataegus Berry, Leaf, and Flower Extracts Affect Viability and Invasive Potential of Human Glioblastoma Cells

Abstract

Crataegus contains numerous health-promoting compounds that are also proposed to have anti-cancer properties. Herein, we aimed at a contemporaneous evaluation of the effects of polyphenol-rich extracts of berries, leaves, and flowers of six Crataegus species on the viability and invasive potential on the highly aggressive human glioblastoma U87MG cell line. The treatment with the extracts evoked cytotoxic effects, with the strongest in the berry extracts. All extracts not only promoted the apoptosis-related cleavage of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 (PARP1) but also substantially inhibited the activity of pro-survival kinases, focal adhesion kinase (FAK), and protein kinase B (PKB; also known as Akt), thus indicating the suppression of proliferative and invasive potentials of the examined glioblastoma cells. The qualitative and quantitative characterization of the extracts’ content was also performed and revealed that amongst 37 polyphenolic compounds identified in the examined Crataegus extracts, the majority (29) was detected in berries; the leaf and flower extracts, exerting milder cytotoxic effects, contained only 14 and 13 compounds, respectively. The highest polyphenol content was found in the berries of C. laevigata x rhipidophylla x monogyna, in which flavan-3-ols and phenolic acids predominated. Our results demonstrated that a high content of polyphenolic compounds correlated with the extract cytotoxicity, and especially berries were a valuable source of compounds with anti-cancer potential. This might be a promising option for the development of an effective therapeutic strategy against highly malignant glioblastomas in the future.

Effect of Ozone-Treated or Untreated Saskatoon Fruits (Amelanchier alnifolia Nutt.) Applied as an Additive on the Quality and Antioxidant Activity of Fruit Beers

“…Determination of polyphenolic compounds was carried out using the UPLC equipped with a binary pump, column and sample manager, photodiode array detector (PDA), tandem quadrupole mass spectrometer (TQD) with electrospray ionization (ESI) source working in negative mode (Waters, Milford, MA, USA) according to the method of Żurek et al [ 57 ]. Separation was performed using the UPLC BEH C18 column (1.7 µm, 100 mm × 2.1 mm, Waters) at 50 °C, at a flow rate of 0.35 mL/min.…”

The Effect of the Addition of Ozonated and Non-Ozonated Fruits of the Saskatoon Berry (Amelanchier alnifolia Nutt.) on the Quality and Pro-Healthy Profile of Craft Wheat Beers

“…The total polyphenol content [mg GAE/L], by using the Folin–Ciocalteu method, and the polyphenol profile [mg/L] in the beers were determined according to the methodology described by Gorzelany et al [ 8 ]. Determination of polyphenolic compounds [mg/L] was carried out using the UPLC equipped with a binary pump, column and sample manager, photodiode array detector (PDA), and tandem quadrupole mass spectrometer (TQD) with electrospray ionisation (ESI) source working in negative mode (Waters, Milford, MA, USA), according to the method of Żurek et al [ 49 ]. Separation was performed using the UPLC BEH C18 column (1.7 µm, 100 mm × 2.1 mm, Waters) at 50 °C, at flow rate of 0.35 mL/min.…”

Feasibility of Defatted Juice from Sea-Buckthorn Berries (Hippophae rhamnoides L.) as a Wheat Beer Enhancer

“…Determination of polyphenolic compounds [mg/L] was carried out using the UPLC equipped with a binary pump, column and sample manager, photodiode array detector (PDA), tandem quadrupole mass spectrometer (TQD) with an electrospray ionization (ESI) source working in negative mode (Waters, Milford, MA, USA) according to the method of Żurek et al [43]. Separation was performed using the UPLC BEH C18 column (1.7 µm, 100 mm × 2.1 mm, Waters) at 50 • C at a flow rate of 0.35 mL/min.…”