الفهرس | Only 14 pages are availabe for public view |
Abstract Background Graviola (Annona muricata) is a small tropical evergreen fruit tree that is widely grown in many tropical zones and used as traditional medicine to treat cancer and tumors. Graviola has been reported to be effective against various human tumors in vitro cultures. Although the underlying molecular mechanisms of its antitumor efficacy are not fully understood, it has been suggested that the induction of apoptosis in cancer cells may account for Graviola antitumor efficacy. Aim The present study aimed to investigate the antitumor efficacy of Graviola leaves extract and to explore its effect on the expression levels of certain apoptotic genes (P53, Bax and Bcl-2) in human breast cancer cell line (MCF-7) and human prostate cancer cell line (PC3). Since the DNA damage is likely to be the primary cause of apoptosis, this study also aimed to evaluate the potential of Graviola leaves extract to induce DNA damage in both human cancer cells. Materials and methods The anti-proliferative effect of the methanol extract of Graviola leaves was evaluated by neutral red uptake assay. Gene expression was assayed by using quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) while DNA damage was estimated by using alkaline comet assay. Results The results revealed the cytotoxic potential of Graviola leaves extract against the studied human breast and prostate cancer cell lines |