title: Anti-tumor activity of safranal against neuroblastoma cells.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Safranal (2,6,6-trimethyl-1,3-cyclohexadiene-1-carboxaldehyde, C10H14O) is an active ingredient in the saffron, which is used in traditional medicine, and also, the biological activity of saffron in anti-cancer is in development. It has been reported to have anti-oxidant effects, but its anti-tumor effects remain uncertain. The aim of this study was to evaluate effects of safranal on anti-tumor on neuroblastoma cells.
  
  
  METHODS
  Neuroblastoma cells were cultured and exposed to safranal (0, 10, 15, 20, 50 μg/ml). Cell proliferation was examined using the 3-(4, 5-dimethyl thiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Apoptotic cells, cell cycle distribution, and sub-G1 fraction were analyzed using flow cytometric analysis after propidium iodide staining.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Safranal inhibited the growth of malignant cells in a dose-and time-dependent manner. The IC (50) values against the neuroblastoma cell line were determined as 11.1 and 23.3 μg/ml after 24 and 48 h, respectively. Safranal induced a sub-G1 peak in the flow cytometry histogram of treated cells compared to control cells indicating that apoptotic cell death is involved in safranal toxicity.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our pre-clinical study demonstrated a neuroblastoma cell line to be highly sensitive to safranal-mediated growth inhibition and apoptotic cell death. Although the molecular mechanisms of safranal action are not yet clearly understood, it appears to have potential as a therapeutic agent.
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Neyshabur University of Medical Sciences, Neyshabur, Iran.
authors.forename: Saeed
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Samarghandian
authors.affiliation: Preventive Cardiovascular Care Research Center, Imam Reza Hospital, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad Ebrahim
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Shoshtari
authors.affiliation: Immunology Research Center, BuAli Research Institute, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
authors.forename: Javad
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sargolzaei
authors.affiliation: Immunology Research Center, BuAli Research Institute, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
authors.forename: Hosna
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hossinimoghadam
authors.affiliation: Allergy Research Center, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
authors.forename: Jabbari Azad
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Farahzad
keywords: Apoptosis; cytotoxcicity; neuroblastoma; propidium iodide; safranal