Antiproliferative Effect of Methanolic Extract of Saraca asoca bark and its Possible Targets of Action

Background: The use of phytochemicals as anticancer drugs has gained attention in scientific and industrial approaches. In this context, the present study was undertaken to determine the antiproliferative effect of methanolic extract of Saraca asoca bark in the C127I cell line and its possible targets of action by in silico analysis. Method: Methanolic extract of S. asoca bark was assessed for its cytotoxicity in the C127I cell line by 3-(4,5-dimethyl thazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay at concentrations of 320, 160, 80, 40 20 and 10 µg/mL and the half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) was calculated using Graph Pad Prism 5.0. The cells were seeded in 6 well plates at a concentration were treated for 24 hours with extract of S. asoca bark at IC50 concentration. The cells were trypsinised and subjected to Acridine orange - Ethidium bromide staining (AOEB) staining for morphological evaluation of apoptosis. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopic analysis was performed to identify the chemical nature of the extract. In silico analysis was done to assess the affinity of various phytochemicals in the extract towards Caspase and BCl2 proteins. Results: Dose-dependent reduction in cell viability was noticed when the cells were subjected to different concentrations of the extract and the IC50 value of S. asoca was found to be 16.55 µg/mL. AO/EB staining detected proliferating cells with green fluorescence in the control cells whereas the cells with S.asoca extract showed a dose-dependent shift from orange to red fluorescence indicating apoptosis in treated cells. Ellagic acid present in the extract was found to have a maximum affinity towards Bcl2 and Caspase proteins. Conclusions: From the study, it could be concluded that the methanolic extract of Saraca asoca was found to possess an antiproliferative effect.