title: First ayurvedic approach towards green drugs: anti cervical cancer-cell properties of Clerodendrum viscosum root extract.
abstract: The concept of Ayurvedic expert guided drug discovery and development is defined and put to test systematically for the first time in literature. Western Science has explored only ~5% of the approximately 25,000 species of higher plants for drug leads. The ancient medical science of Ayurveda has however employed a much larger spectrum of plants for clinical treatment. Clerodendrum viscosum (CV), a commonly growing weed in the Indian subcontinent has been employed by S. Nirmalananda (Ayurvedic expert) for the treatment of cervical cancer. Here we isolate and characterize a water extract fraction (Cv-AP) from the root of CV and evaluate its anticervical cancer cell bioactivity. Our results indicate that Cv-AP possesses pro-apoptotic, anti-proliferative, and anti-migratory activity in a dose-dependent fashion against cervical cancer cell lines. In contrast, primary fibroblasts (control healthy cells), when exposed to similar concentrations of this extract, fail to undergo apoptosis and remain relatively unaffected. These findings suggest that Clerodendrum viscosum (CV) is a readily available source of components with potent anti-cancer activity and selective bioactivity against cervical cancer cells. The major component in CV-AP was identified as a glycoprotein via SDS Page and Concanavalin-A binding studies. This study serves to illustrate that systematic collaboration with Ayurveda is a practical and powerful strategy in drug discovery and development.
authors: Chong
authors: C
authors: Sun
authors: Swami
authors: S
authors: Nirmalananda
authors: Charles E
authors: CE
authors: Jenkins
authors: Shawon
authors: S
authors: Debnath
authors: Rema
authors: R
authors: Balambika
authors: Jimmie E
authors: JE
authors: Fata
authors: Dept of Chemistry, College of Staten Island/City University of New York, Staten Island, NY 10314, USA. Krishnaswami.Raja@csi.cuny.edu.
authors: Krishnaswami S
authors: KS
authors: Raja
mesh_terms: D000972:Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000187:drug effects; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects; D032409:Clerodendrum / Q000737:chemistry*; D003208:Concanavalin A / Q000737:chemistry; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D055808:Drug Discovery; D005260:Female; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects; D006023:Glycoproteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006367:HeLa Cells; D006801:Humans; D008515:Medicine, Ayurvedic; D009928:Organ Specificity; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000737:chemistry; D010946:Plants, Medicinal / Q000737:chemistry*; D061251:Primary Cell Culture; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D000972:Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic; D006023:Glycoproteins; D010936:Plant Extracts; D010940:Plant Proteins; D003208:Concanavalin A