Purpose: To evaluate the in vitro antiproliferative activity of the extracts of three plants from Jordan
flora against a panel of human tumor cell lines representing the most common types of cancer in
Jordan, breast, colorectal and skin cancers.
Methods: The methanol extracts of the aerial parts of the three plants (
Arbutus andrachne
L.,
Chrysanthemum coronarium
L., and
Teucrium polium L.) were prepared and assessed for
antiproliferative activity against six human tumor cell lines (A375.S2, WM1361A, CACO-2, HRT18,
MCF-7, T47D) using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide MTT cell proliferation
assay.
Results: C. coronarium extract, at the concentration range of 25 to 400 μg/mL, significantly inhibited (10
– 50 %) the proliferation of the 6 cell lines in a dose-dependent manner, whilst the extracts of the other
two plants exhibited weak antiproliferative activity (2 – 10 % inhibition). The half-maximal inhibitory
concentration (IC
50) values of
C. coronarium extract against the six cell lines were in the range of 75.8 to
138.5 μg/mL.
Conclusion: The methanol extract of the aerial parts
C. coronarium possesses a relatively potent
antiproliferative activity and therefore might be a potential source of natural compounds that can be
developed into new antineoplastic agents.
