Anticancer properties of nanoniosomes containing ethanolic and methanolic extracts of Citrus limon peel on SKBR-3 breast cancer cells

Deylami, Toktam; Yaghoobi, Mohammad Mehdi; Torkzadeh-Mahani, Masoud

doi:10.30491/jabr.2024.422324.1684

Anticancer properties of nanoniosomes containing ethanolic and methanolic extracts of Citrus limon peel on SKBR-3 breast cancer cells

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Toktam Deylami

Mohammad Mehdi Yaghoobi

Masoud Torkzadeh-Mahani

Department of Biotechnology, Institute of Science and High Technology and Environmental Sciences, Graduate University of Advanced Technology, Kerman, Iran

10.30491/jabr.2024.422324.1684

Abstract

Introduction: The adverse effects of chemotherapy in treating breast cancer have prompted research into identifying and using herbal anticancer compounds with suitable carriers. Accordingly, in the current study, we intended to investigate the effects of niosome-formulated methanolic (Nio/ME) and ethanolic (Nio/EE) extracts of Citrus limon peel on SKBR-3 breast cancer cells.
Materials and Methods: The SKBR-3 breast cancer cell line was subjected to niosomal formulation of ethanolic and methanolic extracts of lemon peel and doxorubicin. The effects on cytotoxicity, cell death, and migration via MTT, wound healing assay, and flow cytometry analysis were investigated.
Results: MTT observations demonstrated that 200 µg/ml of extracts and 0.5 µM doxorubicin were appropriate for loading in the niosome and administered to the cells for 48 hours. In flow cytometry, the apoptosis rate significantly increased for ethanolic and methanolic extract formulations compared to pure extracts. However, encapsulated doxorubicin had a milder toxicity than doxorubicin alone (p≤0.05). Wound healing assay demonstrated significant anti-migratory effects of encapsulated extracts. The extracts had a significant synergistic cytotoxic effect with the drug.
Conclusions: Lemon peel extract has anticancer properties similar to doxorubicin. Additionally, the niosomal formulation demonstrated the ability to load and release the extracts and drug efficiently to the breast cancer cell.

Keywords

Nanoniosome

Cancer

Herbal

Apoptosis

Cytotoxicity

Scratch Assay