An increasing interest is emerging in identifying natural products to overcome drug resistance in cancer patients. In this context, the present study was conducted to investigate the cytotoxic effects of neem plant (Azadirachta indica) oil in three different biological models (breast cancer cell lines, Allium cepa root tip, and mice vital organs). The cytotoxic potential of the neem oil was evaluated with two human cell lines (MCF7 and MDA-MB231) and an Allum cepa root tip bioassay. Histopathological analysis was conducted on the neem oil-treated and untreated control mice. The results revealed an anti-proliferative effect for neem oil on both estrogen receptor-positive (MCF7) and estrogen receptor-negative (MDA-MB231) breast cancer cell lines with an IC50 value of 45.7 and 60 µg/ml, respectively. Also, a significant (p ≤ 0.001) reduction in the average mitotic index and elevated levels of cytogenetic abnormalities were observed in A. cepa root tips treated with different concentrations of neem oil extract compared to untreated roots. Moreover, very low to undetectable histopathological changes in the vital organs (liver and spleen) of mice administered with 15 mg/ml neem oil were also observed. The findings of this study suggest that neem oil extract has the potential to inhibit the growth of different rapidly dividing biological models (breast cancer cell lines and A. cepa root tips) with minimal toxicity to the vital organs of the exposed mice. This could be explored further for the development of novel therapeutics to address the problem of drug resistance associated with different malignancies.
Background: A great dental and biomedical interest had been paid to silver nanoparticles because of their antimicrobial activity. Objective: To evaluate the antimicrobial and cytotoxic activity of a newly developed Nano-silver fluoride that was synthesized from moringa oleifera leaf extract against S. mutants. Material and method: The green synthesis method was used to prepare Nano-silver fluoride from moringa oleifera leaf extract. The minimum inhibitory concentration and the minimum bactericidal concentration were evaluated using brain heart infusion plates, while the cytotoxicity was evaluated by the hemolytic activity. Results: Nano-silver fluoride had a bactericidal and bacteriostatic effect (MIC was 60 ppm and MBC was 120 pp
... Show MoreThe risk of breast cancer development is believed to be attributed to the alterations of a number of key biological components. Within this context, elevated levels of some chemokines that act as growth factors and can promote cancer development. The current study was designed to evaluate CXCL3 (a chemokine C-X-C Motif Ligand 3) and leptin (a peptide hormone synthesized by adipose tissue with cytokine activity) serum of Iraqi breast cancer patients in comparison to healthy controls. A total of 90 participants consisted of 60 patients diagnosed with breast cancer and 30 healthy women as control group were enrolled into this case-control study. Venous blood samples were collected from all participants to evaluate CXCL3 and leptin serum levels
... Show MoreSince cancer is becoming a leading cause of death worldwide, efforts should be concentrated on understanding its underlying biological alterations that would be utilized in disease management, especially prevention strategies. Within this context, multiple bodies of evidence have highlighted leptin’s practical and promising role, a peptide hormone extracted from adipose and fatty tissues with other adipokines, in promoting the proliferation, migration, and metastatic invasion of breast carcinoma cells. Excessive blood leptin levels and hyperleptinemia increase body fat content and stimulate appetite. Also, high leptin level is believed to be associated with several conditions, including overeating, emotional stress, inflammation, obesity,
... Show MoreA new Schiff base [I] was prepared by refluxing Amoxicillin trihydrate and 4-Hydroxy- 3,5-dimethoxybenzaldehyde in aqueous methanol solution using glacial acetic acid as a catalyst. The new 1,3-oxazepine derivative [II] was obtained by Diels- Alder reaction of Schiff base [I] with phthalic anhydride in dry benzene. The reaction of Schiff base [I] with thioglycolic acid in dry benzene led to the formation of thiazolidin-4-one derivative [III]. While the imidazolidin-4-one [IV] derivative was produced by reacting the mentioned Schiff base [I] with glycine and triethylamine in ethanol for 9 hrs. Tetrazole derivative [V] was synthesized by refluxing Schiff base [I] with sodium azide in dimethylformamid DMF. The structure of synthesized compound
... Show MoreSTAG proteins, which are part of the cohesin complex and encoded by the STAG genes, are known as Irr1/Scc3 in yeast and as SA/STAG/stromalin in mammals. There are more variants as there are alternate splice sites, maybe three open reading frames (ORFs) code for three main proteins, including: SA1 (STAG1), SA2 (STAG2) and SA3 (STAG3). The cohesin protein complex has various essential roles in eukaryotic cell biology. This study compared the expression of the STAG1 gene in four different breast cancer cell lines, including: MCF-7, T-47D, MDA-MB-468, and MDA-MB-231 and normal breast tissue. RNA was extracted from these cell lines and mRNA was converted to cDNA, and then expression of the STAG1 gene was quantified by three sets of specific prim
... Show MoreMorus alba, member of the Moraceae family, is a perennial tree utilized in folk medicine, preparing the modern drug, and considered the main food for silkworms. However, data on chemical content in the leaves is still limited; the main objective of this study is to detect the presence and determine the concentration of different polyphenolic constituents in the leaves of the Morus alba plant by reverse phase-high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) and evaluate the cytotoxic effect of ethyl acetate extract of this plant on human breast cancer (AMJ-13) cell line. Phytochemical analysis of the Morus alba leaves ethyl acetate extract led to identifying and quantification of six polyphenolic constituents designated as phenolic a
... Show MoreThis research was conduct to evaluate the cytotoxic effect of exotoxin A (ETA) produced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa on mice in comparison with (phosphate buffer saline (PBS) as a negative control. The effect of the toxin was measured by employing the cytogenetic analysis which included (the mitotic index (MI), chromosomal aberrations (CAs), micronucleus (MN) and sperm abnormalities) parameters. In order to specify the cytotoxic effect of the toxin, three doses of ETA (125, 250 and 500 ng/ml) were used. Results showed that ETA was found to cause a significant decrease in mitotic index (MI) percentage, while significant increase in micronucleus (MN), chromosomal aberrations (CAs) and sperm abnormalities parameters in compression with control wa
... Show MoreBackground: A great dental and biomedical interest had been paid to silver nanoparticles because of their antimicrobial activity. Objective: To evaluate the antimicrobial and cytotoxic activity of a newly developed Nano-silver fluoride that was synthesized from moringa oleifera leaf extract against S. mutants. Material and method: The green synthesis method was used to prepare Nano-silver fluoride from moringa oleifera leaf extract. The minimum inhibitory concentration and the minimum bactericidal concentration were evaluated using brain heart infusion plates, while the cytotoxicity was evaluated by the hemolytic activity. Results: Nano-silver fluoride had a bactericidal and bacteriostatic effect (MIC was 60 ppm a
... Show MoreSchizophrenia (ZP) is a common devastating cognitive disorder; however, the etiology of its incidence remains largely unclear yet. Although some evidence blames both environ ment and genetic factor as main drivers of ZP, but the clear mechanism of their effect elusive till now. Of interest, severe anemia conditions can lead to hypoxia in CNS which disturbs the normal structures and functions of some area in the brain resulting in abnormalities in the neurons communications and decrease synaptic plasticity. Additionally, modulation of cytoskeleton constituents is thought to participate to ZP development. Recently, it has been revealed that iron deficiency, which is the main cause of anemia, has a significant impact on the cytoskeleton
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