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Screening of Anti-carcinogenic Properties of Phytocompounds from Allium ascalonicum for Treating Breast Cancer Through In Silico and In Vitro Approaches

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Abstract

Plants, rich in phytocompounds, have been in usage since time immemorial for treating various diseases, namely, cancer. One such plant species, Allium ascalonicum (Shallot) belonging to Amaryllidaceae family is being studied here for its anti-carcinogenic properties against breast cancer. GC–MS characterization of A. ascalonicum exhibited 48 phytocompounds containing five peak phytocompounds and 13 phytocompounds with anti-carcinogenic properties. These 13 anti-carcinogenic phytocompounds were docked with three hormonal receptors involved in breast cancer malignancy, namely, ERα, PR, and human EGFR with tamoxifen as standard for in silico analysis. The results exhibited three phytocompounds that had better binding scores compared to that of the standard drug, tamoxifen. Lyophilized powder of aqueous A. ascalonicum extract, also referred as ASE, was used for in vitro approaches. Antioxidant study using DPPH assay revealed that the highest percentage of FRSA in ASE, nearly 51%, was observed at 50 µg/ml concentration. Cytotoxicity study on MCF-7 cell line using MTT assay demonstrated IC50 value at 1400 µg/ml and anti-proliferative study using Trypan blue assay for the determination of percentage viability of MCF-7 cells at IC50 concentration was observed to be 49%. Anti-mitotic activity using Vigna radiata seed germination assay revealed clear morphological differences in a dose-dependent manner between the seeds grown at various concentrations of ASE with nearly 56.5% growth inhibition observed at 1500 µg/ml concentration. Hence, this research work proves that Allium ascalonicum has very good anti-carcinogenic properties and this can be confirmed further through in vivo animal model studies and it can also be formulated as a promising drug to treat breast cancer.

Graphical Abstract

GC–MS characterization of Allium ascalonicum demonstrated the presence of five peak compounds and thirteen anti-carcinogenic compounds. The thirteen anti-carcinogenic compounds were docked with three target proteins (in silico analysis) involved in breast cancer malignancy and identified the presence of three potential phytocompounds that can be used for treating breast cancer. In vitro approaches also confirmed the presence of anti-carcinogenic properties such as antioxidative potential, cytotoxic, anti-proliferative, and anti-mitotic effects. Hence, Allium ascalonicum can be taken further to in vivo studies so that it can be formulated to treat breast cancer.

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Data Availability

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Abbreviations

GC-MS:

Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

A. ascalonicum :

Allium ascalonicum

ERα:

Alpha binding domain-human estrogen receptor

PR:

Human progesterone receptor

EGFR:

Epidermal growth factor receptor

ASE:

Aqueous shallot extract

DPPH:

2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl

FRSA:

Free radical scavenging activity

MTT:

3-[4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide

V. rad iata :

Vigna radiata

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Acknowledgements

The authors are very much grateful to the School of Life Sciences, B. S. Abdur Rahman Crescent Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, for providing research facilities and also for their constant support and encouragement.

Funding

This project work was sanctioned by Tamil Nadu State Council for Science and Technology (TNSCST) under the Student Project Scheme (SPS)-Science Stream (2021–2022) Code: MS-017, DOTE Campus, Chennai-600 025, Tamil Nadu, India.

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  1. School of Life Sciences, B. S. Abdur Rahman Crescent Institute of Science & Technology, Vandalur, Chennai, 600048, India

    Karunya Jenin Ravindranath, Simon Durairaj Christian & Hemalatha Srinivasan

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  3. Hemalatha Srinivasan
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Hemalatha Srinivasan: conceived the idea, supervision, data curation, validation, and project administration. Karunya Jenin Ravindranath: designed-performed research and wrote manuscript. Simon Durairaj Christian: performed research, analyzed data, reviewing, and editing.

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Correspondence to Hemalatha Srinivasan.

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Ravindranath, K.J., Christian, S.D. & Srinivasan, H. Screening of Anti-carcinogenic Properties of Phytocompounds from Allium ascalonicum for Treating Breast Cancer Through In Silico and In Vitro Approaches. Appl Biochem Biotechnol 195, 1136–1157 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12010-022-04202-1

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