Van Slambrouck Severine, Daniels Amber L, Hooten Carla J, Brock Steven L, Jenkins Aaron R, Ogasawara Marcia A, Baker Joann M, Adkins Glen, Elias Eerik M, Agustin Vincent J, Constantine Sarah R, Pullin Michael J, Shors Scott T, Kornienko Alexander, Steelant Wim F A
Laboratory of Biochemical and Biomedical Research, Department of Chemistry and Biology, New Mexico Tech, Socorro, NM 87801, USA.
Oncol Rep. 2007 Jun;17(6):1487-92.
Plants used in folklore medicine continue to be an important source of discovery and development of novel therapeutic agents. In the present study, we determined the effects of crude aqueous extracts of a panel of medicinal plants on the growth and invasion of cancer cells. Our results showed that extracts of L. tridentata (Creosote Bush) and J. communis L. (Juniper Berry) significantly decreased the growth of MCF-7/AZ breast cancer cells. The latter as well as A. californica (Yerba Mansa) inhibited invasion into the collagen type I gel layer. Furthermore, the phosphorylation levels of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1 and 2 (ERK1/2) decreased when the cells were exposed to aqueous extracts of L. tridentata, J. communis L. and A. californica. This study provides original scientific data on the anticancer activity of selected aqueous medicinal plant extracts used in traditional medicine.
