title: Evaluation of Pistacia lentiscus seed oil and phenolic compounds for in vitro antiproliferative effects against BHK21 cells.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Within the global context of increasing cancer diseases, natural products are important in devising new drugs and providing unique ideas in cancer therapy. In Tunisian folk medicine, Pistacia lentiscus L. (Anacardiaceae) fixed oil is used for cancer treatment.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This investigation studied, for the first time, the antiproliferative effect of Pistacia lentiscus fixed oil and its phenolic extract on BHK21 cancer cells.
  
  
  METHODS
  Oil was extracted from fruits harvested in northwest Tunisia and the phenolic fraction was obtained by mixing with methanol. The anti-proliferative activity of the two tested substances on BHK 21 cells were investigated in vitro using trypan blue assays. Cells were treated with different concentrations of P. lentiscus oil (0.009, 0.018, 0.036, and 0.09 g/mL) and the phenolic extract (0.007, 0.014, 0.03, and 0.07 g/mL) for 24, 48, and 72 h.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The inhibitory effect of Pistacia lentiscus fixed oil increases with the increase in dose. The IC50 value was estimated at 0.029 g/mL. The percentage of cell viability was 42.46 ± 3.4% at a dose of 0.09 g/mL and was significantly lower than that of the untreated control (96.24 ± 2.5%, p<0.01). The phenolic extract demonstrated a dose- and time-dependent inhibitory effect on BHK21 cell growth. After 48 h of incubation, the IC50 value was estimated at 0.15 g/mL.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results demonstrated the potential of Pistacia lentiscus fixed oil in treating cancer, as it is used in traditional medicine.
authors.affiliation: a National Institute for Research in Rural Engineering, Water and Forests, INRGREF , Ariana , Tunisia and.
authors.forename: Faten
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mezni
authors.affiliation: b Laboratory of Epidemiology and Microbiology, Bacteriology and Biotechnology Development Group, Pasteur Institute of Tunisia (IPT) , Tunis , Tunisia.
authors.forename: Sarra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shili
authors.affiliation: b Laboratory of Epidemiology and Microbiology, Bacteriology and Biotechnology Development Group, Pasteur Institute of Tunisia (IPT) , Tunis , Tunisia.
authors.forename: Nejia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ben Ali
authors.affiliation: a National Institute for Research in Rural Engineering, Water and Forests, INRGREF , Ariana , Tunisia and.
authors.forename: Mohamed
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Larbi Khouja
authors.affiliation: a National Institute for Research in Rural Engineering, Water and Forests, INRGREF , Ariana , Tunisia and.
authors.forename: Abdelhamid
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Khaldi
authors.affiliation: b Laboratory of Epidemiology and Microbiology, Bacteriology and Biotechnology Development Group, Pasteur Institute of Tunisia (IPT) , Tunis , Tunisia.
authors.forename: Abderrazak
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Maaroufi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D006224:Cricetinae; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical / Q000379:methods; D010636:Phenols / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology*; D027927:Pistacia; D010938:Plant Oils / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology*; D012639:Seeds
chemical_list: D010636:Phenols; D010938:Plant Oils
keywords: Fixed oil; immortal cells; mastic tree; phenols; viability