In Vitro Investigation of the Cytotoxic and Antioxidant Activities of Ardisia polycephala, Iresine herbstii, and Oenanthe javanica Extracts With Potential Applications in Breast Cancer Therapy.

Abstract

Ardisia polycephala, Iresine herbstii, and Oenanthe javanica are commonly used to nourish women's blood and treat reproductive system diseases, according to Thai Traditional Medicine (TTM) scriptures. This study explores the biological activities of these herbs as documented in TTMs. Both water and ethanol extracts of the three herbs were examined for their antioxidant activities using DPPH, FRAP, and NO assays. Additionally, their antiestrogen and cytotoxic effects were investigated, focusing on breast cancer cell lines (T47D and MCF-7). Chemical analysis was conducted using the GC-MS technique, with reference data obtained from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) library. All herbs demonstrated good antioxidant activity. The water extract of Ardisia polycephala (AP^∗∗) exhibited the highest activity in the DPPH assay (EC₅₀ = 7.09 ± 1.47 μg/mL), which correlated with the FRAP results (358.52 ± 1.07 mg Trolox equivalent per gram). The ethanol extract of Oenanthe javanica (OJ^∗) specifically showed cytotoxicity against both T47D and MCF-7 cell lines (IC₅₀ = 38.06 ± 1.52 and 39.93 ± 0.36 μg/mL, respectively) and demonstrated antiestrogen activity by inhibiting the growth of T47D cells by 99% at 1.3 μg/mL when stimulated with 100 pM estradiol. GC-MS analysis identified numerous compounds that support the observed biological activities, including antioxidant and cytotoxic effects. In summary, the three herbs demonstrated antioxidant, cytotoxic, and antiestrogen activities consistent with the chemical compounds identified in the GC-MS analysis. These findings suggest the potential use of these herbs in future breast cancer treatments.