Long-Term Treatment with Aqueous Garlic and/or Tomato Suspensions Decreases Ehrlich Ascites Tumors Jenifer Bom,1 Patrícia Gunutzmann,1 Elizabeth C. Pérez Hurtado,1 Jussara M. R. Maragno-Correa,2 Silvia Regina Kleeb,3 and Maria Anete Lallo1
1Environmental and Experimental Pathology Post-Graduation, Paulista University (UNIP), Rua José Maria Whitaker 290, 05622-001 São Paulo, SP, Brazil 2Pharmacology Department, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), Rua Sena Madureira, 04021-001 São Paulo, SP, Brazil 3Veterinary Medicine, University Metodista of São Paulo, Rua Alfeu Tavares 149, 09641-000 São Bernardo do Campo, SP, Brazil
Abstract We evaluated the preventive and therapeutic effects of aqueous suspensions of garlic, tomato, and garlic + tomato in the development of experimental Ehrlich tumors in mice. The aqueous suspensions (2%) were administered over a short term for 30 days before tumor inoculation and 12 days afterward, and suspensions at 6% were administered for 180 days before inoculation and for 12 days afterward. The volume, number, and characteristics of the tumor cells and AgNOR counts were determined to compare the different treatments. Aqueous 6% suspensions of garlic, tomato, and garlic + tomato given over the long term significantly reduced tumor growth but when given over the short term, they did not alter tumor growth. Source : Evidence Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine Journal Link to Full Article Calcarea carbonica induces apoptosis in cancer cells in p53-dependent manner via an immuno-modulatory circuit Shilpi Saha, Dewan Md Hossain, Shravanti Mukherjee, Suchismita Mohanty, Minakshi Mazumdar, Sanhita Mukherjee, Uttam K Ghosh, Chaturbhuj Nayek, Chinta Raveendar, Anil Khurana, Rathin Chakrabarty, Gaurisankar Sa and Tanya Das
Abstract
Background Complementary medicines, including homeopathy, are used by many patients with cancer, usually alongside with conventional treatment. However, the molecular mechanisms underneath the anti-cancer effect, if any, of these medicines have still remained unexplored. To this end we attempted to evaluate the efficacy of calcarea carbonica, a homeopathic medicine, as an anti-cancer agent and to delineate the detail molecular mechanism(s) underlying calcerea carbonica-induced tumor regression.
Methods To investigate and delineate the underlying mechanisms of calcarea carbonica-induced tumor regression, Trypan blue dye-exclusion test, flow cytometric, Western blot and reverse transcriptase-PCR techniques were employed. Further, siRNA transfections and inhibitor studies were used to validate the involvement of p53 pathway in calcarea carbonica-induced apoptosis in cancer cells.
Results Interestingly, although calcarea carbonica administration to Ehrlich’s ascites carcinoma (EAC)- and Sarcoma-180 (S-180)-bearing Swiss albino mice resulted in 30-35% tumor cell apoptosis, it failed to induce any significant cell death in ex vivo conditions. These results prompted us to examine whether calcarea carbonica employs the immuno-modulatory circuit in asserting its anti-tumor effects. In tumor-bearing mice, there was profound depletion of CD4+ and CD8+ cells in peripheral blood, dominance of type-2 T helper cells and inhibition of T cell proliferation. Calcarea carbonica in turn prevented such loss of effector T cell repertoire, reversed type-2 cytokine bias and attenuated tumor-induced inhibition of T cell proliferation in tumor-bearing host. To confirm the role of immune system in calcarea carbonica-induced cancer cell death, a battery of cancer cells were co-cultured with calcarea carbonica-primed T cells. Our results indicated a “two-step” mechanism of the induction of apoptosis in tumor cells by calcarea carbonica i.e., (1) activation of the immune system of the host; and (2) induction of cancer cell apoptosis via immuno-modulatory circuit in p53-dependent manner by down-regulating Bcl-2:Bax ratio. Bax up-regulation resulted in mitochondrial transmembrane potential loss and cytochrome c release followed by activation of caspase cascade. Knocking out of p53 by RNA-interference inhibited calcarea carbonica-induced apoptosis thereby confirming the contribution of p53.
Conclusion These observations delineate the significance of immuno-modulatory circuit during calcarea carbonica-mediated tumor apoptosis. The molecular mechanism identified may serve as a platform for involving calcarea carbonica into immunotherapeutic strategies for effective tumor regression.
In vitro cytotoxic effect of hydroalcoholic extracts of medicinal plants on Ehrlich’s Ascites Carcinoma (EAC) Rhitajit Sarkar, Nripendranath Mandal
Abstract Context and Purpose: Cancer continues to represent the largest cause of mortality in the world and claims over 6 million lives each year. An extremely promising strategy for cancer prevention today is chemoprevention, which is defined as the use of synthetic or natural agents (alone or in combination) to block the development of cancer in human beings. Plants, vegetables, herbs and spices used in folk and traditional medicine have been accepted currently as one of the main sources of cancer chemopreventive drug discovery
Main findings: Hydroalcoholic extracts of Terminalia chebula, Terminalia belerica, Emblica officinalis, Caesalpinia crista, Cajanus cajan, and Tinospora cordifolia are found to be variably and selectively cytotoxic to normal and EAC cells.
Brief Summary: Hydroalcoholic extracts of Terminalia chebula, Terminalia belerica, Emblica officinalis, Caesalpinia crista, Cajanus cajan, and Tinospora cordifolia which have been found to be possible natural antioxidant are evaluated for their selective cytotoxic effect on murine tumor cell Ehrlich’s Ascites Carcinoma (EAC) and normal spleenocyte cell. The extracts were subjected to cytotoxicity test by the tetrazolium cell proliferation reagent (WST-1) assay in vitro. The results showed that the plant extracts were invariably non toxic for the normal spleenocyte cell, whereas they showed toxicity for EAC cells in different degree. The cell cycle analysis for the EAC cells treated with the extracts of the aforesaid plants showed a variable, yet dose-dependent increasing percentage of apoptosis.
Potential Implications: The results signify that the plants which have antioxidant property may function as cytotoxic agent for cancer cell.
Source : International Journal of Phytomedicine Link to Full Article - download below
Antitumor activity of ethanol extract of Gracilaria edulis (Gmelin) Silva on Ehrlich ascites carcinoma-bearing mice 1. Meenakshi Sundaram (Department of Biotechnology, School of Chemical and Biotechnology, SASTRA University, Thanjavur 613401, Tamilnadu, India ) 2. Satyajit Patra (School of Medicine, University of Alabama, Birmingham, Alabama 35294, USA ) 3. Gunasingham Maniarasu (Department of Biotechnology, Srimad Andavan Arts and Science College, Trichy 620005, Tamilnadu, India )
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate antitumor activity of Gracilaria edulis in Swiss albino mice with Ehrlich ascites carcinoma (EAC).
METHODS: Tumors were induced in mice by intraperitoneal injection of EAC cells. Ethanol extract of Gracilaria edulis (EEGE) was administered to the experimental animals in different doses after 24 h of tumor inoculation. The antitumor effect of the EEGE was evaluated by assessing in vitro cytotoxicity, survival time, biochemical parameters and hepatic enzyme levels.
RESULTS: EEGE increased the life span of EAC-bearing mice compared with that of the model control mice (P<0.05 or P<0.01). EEGE treatment also converted the changes of biochemical parameters and hepatic enzyme levels in the EAC-bearing mice (P<0.05 or P<0.01). EEGE induced inhibition of tumor formation in EAC-bearing mice compared with that of the model control group (P<0.05 or P<0.01).
CONCLUSION:The present study scientifically proved the antitumor activity of marine algae G. edulis and the effect can be correlated with doses.
Source : Journal of Chinese Integrative Medicine: Volume 10 April, 2012 Number 4 Link to Full Article