Evaluation of antiproliferative and antioxidant activities of the organic extract and its polar fractions from the Mediterranean gorgonian Eunicella singularis.

The present study was conducted to evaluate the antiproliferative and antioxidant activities of organic extract and its polar fractions from Eunicella singularis (Esper 1794). Organic extract and two fractions of E. singularis (F2 and F3) were screened for the presence of phenolic compounds, terpenoids and glycosides. The antiproliferative activity of E. singularis organic extract and its polar fractions was evaluated on human cancer cell lines (A549, lung cell carcinoma; HCT15, colon cell carcinoma and MCF7, breast adenocarcinoma), using the MTT colorimetric method and clonogenic assay, as well as the antioxidant activity, using the stable radical 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), and the FRAP assays. The fractions F2 and F3 showed significant total phenolic content (40 and 35.72mg gallic-acid equivalent/g dried sample), respectively, and important antiproliferative properties against the cancer cell lines. The IC50 values, ranged from 36 to 274μg/ml for A549; 93 to 426μg/ml for HCT15; and 52 to 225μg/ml for MCF7 and in the clonogenic inhibition assay from 18 to 134μg/ml for A549; 43 to 357μg/ml for HCT15; and 17 to 160μg/ml for MCF7. Using the DPPH method, the fraction F2 exhibited the strongest radical scavenging activity, with IC50 0.08mg/ml, which approaches the activity of the powerful antioxidant standard, ascorbic acid (IC50=0.064mg/ml). The reducing power of the samples was in the following order: F2>organic extract>F3. These results suggest that E. singularis fractions might be used as a potential source of natural antioxidant and antitumor agents. The purification and determination of the chemical structures of compounds in these active fractions are under investigation. The results could provide a compound(s) with a promising role in future medicines.