Antitumor Mechanisms of Olive Fruit Metabolites, Maslinic, and Oleanolic Acids on Lung Cancer Cells

Objective: There is an increasing demand for novel and effective anticancer therapies due to the rapid development of resistance to standard anticancer agents. Nonetheless, it is quite challenging to develop new anticancer agents that can selectively inhibit the proliferation of cancer cells with little or no effect on normal cells. Therefore, studies aimed at developing new chemotherapeutic agents with potential anticancer activity against various types of cancer are still ongoing. Methods: As a component of our ongoing research to discover new natural anticancer agents, in the current study, we explored the cytotoxic, apoptotic, genotoxic, and oxidant potentials of oleanolic acid (I) and maslinic acid (II) isolated from olive (Olea europaea L.) fruits on the A549 and H1299 lung cancer cells. Results and Discussion: Our findings indicate that the metabolites of the olive fruit exhibit cytotoxic and genotoxic activities, but do not have an apoptotic effect related to oxidative stress. Conclusions: Evidence from the current study concludes that olive fruit metabolites, oleanolic acid (I) and maslinic acid (II), possess antitumoral activity on lung cancer cell lines and are candidate molecules for further investigations.