title: Herbal Formulation C168 Attenuates Proliferation and Induces Apoptosis in HCT 116 Human Colorectal Carcinoma Cells: Role of Oxidative Stress and DNA Damage.
abstract: The use of herbal formulations has gained scientific interest, particularly in cancer treatment. In this study, the herbal formulation of interest, denoted as C168, is a mixture of eight genera of plants. This study aims to investigate the antiproliferative effect of C168 methanol extract (CME) on various cancer cells and its underlying mechanism of action on the most responsive cell line, namely, HCT 116 cells. CME exerted antiproliferative activities on HCT 116 colorectal carcinoma cells and HepG2 hepatocellular carcinoma cells but not on CCD-841-CoN normal colon epithelial cells, Jurkat E6.1 lymphoblastic leukemic cells, and V79-4 Chinese hamster lung fibroblasts. Further investigation on HCT 116 cells showed that CME induced G2/M cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis. Treatment of CME induced oxidative stress in HCT 116 cells by increasing the superoxide anion level and decreasing the intracellular glutathione. CME also increased tail moment value and H2AX phosphorylation in HCT 116 cells, suggesting DNA damage as an early signal of CME induced apoptosis. Loss of mitochondrial membrane potential in CME-treated cells also indicated the involvement of mitochondria in CME induced apoptosis. This study indicated the selectivity of CME toward colon cancer cells with the involvement of oxidative damage as its possible mechanism of action.
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Science Programme, School of Diagnostic and Applied Health Science, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, 50300 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Lek Mun
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Leong
authors.affiliation: Environmental Health and Industrial Safety Programme, School of Diagnostic and Applied Health Science, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, 50300 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Toxicology Laboratory, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, 50300 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Kok Meng
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Science Programme, School of Diagnostic and Applied Health Science, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, 50300 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Toxicology Laboratory, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, 50300 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Asmah
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hamid
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical Science and Food Technology, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Jalan Reko, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Jalifah
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Latip
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Science Programme, School of Diagnostic and Applied Health Science, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, 50300 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Toxicology Laboratory, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, 50300 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Nor Fadilah
authors.initials: NF
authors.lastname: Rajab