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BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies

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Open Access 01-12-2019 | Research article

Biological and toxicological evaluation of Rhus trilobata Nutt. (Anacardiaceae) used traditionally in mexico against cancer

Authors: Luis Varela-Rodríguez, Blanca Sánchez-Ramírez, Ivette Stephanie Rodríguez-Reyna, José Juan Ordaz-Ortiz, David Chávez-Flores, Erika Salas-Muñoz, Juan Carlos Osorio-Trujillo, Ernesto Ramos-Martínez, Patricia Talamás-Rohana

Published in: BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies | Issue 1/2019

Abstract

Background

Rhus trilobata Nutt. (Anacardiaceae) (RHTR) is a plant of Mexico that is traditionally used as an alternative treatment for several types of cancer. However, the phytochemical composition and potential toxicity of this plant have not been evaluated to support its therapeutic use. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the biological activity of RHTR against colorectal adenocarcinoma cells, determine its possible acute toxicity, and analyze its phytochemical composition.

Methods

The traditional preparation was performed by decoction of stems in distilled water (aqueous extract, AE), and flavonoids were concentrated with C₁₈-cartridges and ethyl acetate (flavonoid fraction, FF). The biological activity was evaluated by MTT viability curves and the TUNEL assay in colorectal adenocarcinoma (CACO-2), ovarian epithelium (CHO-K1) and lung/bronchus epithelium (BEAS-2B) cells. The toxicological effect was determined in female BALB/c mice after 24 h and 14 days of intraperitoneal administration of 200 mg/kg AE and FF, respectively. Later, the animals were sacrificed for histopathological observation of organs and sera obtained by retro-orbital bleeding for biochemical marker analysis. Finally, the phytochemical characterization of AE and FF was conducted by UPLC-MS^E.

Results

In the MTT assays, AE and FF at 5 and 18 μg/mL decreased the viability of CACO-2 cells compared with cells treated with vehicle or normal cells (p ≤ 0.05, ANOVA), with changes in cell morphology and the induction of apoptosis. Anatomical and histological analysis of organs did not reveal important pathological lesions at the time of assessment. Additionally, biochemical markers remained normal and showed no differences from those of the control group after 24 h and 14 days of treatment (p ≤ 0.05, ANOVA). Finally, UPLC-MS^E analysis revealed 173 compounds in AE-RHTR, primarily flavonoids, fatty acids and phenolic acids. The most abundant compounds in AE and FF were quercetin and myricetin derivates (glycosides), methyl gallate, epigallocatechin-3-cinnamate, β-PGG, fisetin and margaric acid, which might be related to the anticancer properties of RHTR.

Conclusion

RHTR exhibits biological activity against cancer cells and does not present adverse toxicological effects during its in vivo administration, supporting its traditional use.

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Title: Biological and toxicological evaluation of Rhus trilobata Nutt. (Anacardiaceae) used traditionally in mexico against cancer
Authors: Luis Varela-Rodríguez
Blanca Sánchez-Ramírez
Ivette Stephanie Rodríguez-Reyna
José Juan Ordaz-Ortiz
David Chávez-Flores
Erika Salas-Muñoz
Juan Carlos Osorio-Trujillo
Ernesto Ramos-Martínez
Patricia Talamás-Rohana
Publication date: 01-12-2019
Publisher: BioMed Central
Published in: BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies / Issue 1/2019
Electronic ISSN: 2662-7671
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12906-019-2566-9

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Biological and toxicological evaluation of Rhus trilobata Nutt. (Anacardiaceae) used traditionally in mexico against cancer

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Abstract

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