Anticancer Activities of Extract from Amaranthus viridis L.

Abstract

Amaranthus viridis L. is a traditional medicine in Asia. In this study, the ethyl ether fraction of A. viridis L. (EA) was tested in vitro for anticancer activity against human colon cancer HT-29 cells. HT-29 cells were treated with different concentrations of EA. Cell proliferation was detected by MTT assay. The gene expression of Bax, Bcl-2, caspase-3, c-myc, p53 was determined by RT-PCR. The generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and cell cycle assay was monitored by flow cytometry. Results indicated the EA significantly inhibited human colon cancer HT-29 cell growth in a dose-dependent manner by inducing G0/G1 phase arrest and apoptosis. The inhibition was associated with intracellular reactive oxygen species generation. Cell death induced by EA displayed features characteristic of apoptosis and was associated with generation of reactive oxygen species and enhanced expression of caspase-3 and the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio in HT-29 cells treated with EA. These findings suggest that A. viridis L. have anticancer properties and may be valuable for application in pharmaceutical industry.