Antileukemic effect of Kalpaamruthaa, a modified Siddha preparation, in BCR–ABL ⁺ cell line induced chronic myeloid leukemic mouse model

Kalpaamruthaa is a modified Siddha (herbal) drug prepared in our laboratory. It has been proven to have therapeutic effect against arthritis, mammary cancer, and liver cancer. To evaluate the antileukemic effect of the drug, Kalpaamruthaa (KA), in chronic myeloid leukemia-induced mice, leukemia was induced in BALB/c mice by tail vein injection of BCR–ABL ⁺12B1 murine leukemia cell line. Leukemia-induced animals were treated with KA at a dosage of 200 mg/kg b.wt. dissolved in 0.5 ml of olive oil for 14 days, daily by gastric intubation. Imatinib mesylate was used as the reference drug. The drug KA significantly decreased the levels of marker enzymes and lipid peroxides and increased the levels of antioxidant enzymes. The bone marrow and histopathological abnormalities were also found to be normalized after treatment with the drug, KA. No significant adverse effect was observed in sole drug-treated group of rats. The present study suggests that KA, by means of its antioxidant and free radical quenching effect, has definite anti cancer effect in leukemic mice.