Elbe H, Yigitturk G, Cavusoglu T, Uyanikgil Y, Ozturk F
Bratisl Lek Listy. 2020;121(2):122-128. doi: 10.4149/BLL_2020_016.
Cancer is a major public health problem in many areas of the world. Many anticancer drugs in current clinical use have been isolated from plant species or are based on such substances. Thymol (5-methyl-2-isopropylphenol) is an oxygenated aromatic compound from monoterpene group. It is the main constituent of thyme essential oil and shows antioxidant, antiseptic and antiproliferative properties. The aim of this study is to determine the antiproliferative activity and apoptotic effect of thymol on prostate cancer (PC-3, DU145), breast cancer (MDA-MB-231), and lung cancer (KLN205) cell lines.
The cancer cells were treated with different concentrations of thymol (100, 200, 400, 600, 800 µM) at 24 h, 48 h and 72 h. The cell viability was investigated by MTT assay and analysis of apoptosis was determined with annexin V assay.
The study showed the dose and time-dependent cytotoxic effect of thymol in PC-3, DU145, MDA-MB-231, and KLN205 cancer cell lines. Thymol significantly induced apoptosis in all groups in a dose-dependent manner. Statistical analysis showed a significant difference between thymol‑treated cell lines compared to the control (p < 0.001).
The data in the present study demonstrated that thymol has apoptotic and antiproliferative properties in lung, breast and prostate cancer cell lines. Thymol could serve as a potential therapeutic agent in the future (Fig. 5, Ref. 26).
癌症是世界许多地区的主要公共卫生问题。目前临床使用的许多抗癌药物都从植物物种中分离得到或基于此类物质。百里香酚（5-甲基-2-异丙基苯酚）是一种来自单萜类的氧化芳香化合物。它是百里香精油的主要成分，具有抗氧化、防腐和抗增殖特性。本研究的目的是确定百里香酚对前列腺癌（PC-3、DU145）、乳腺癌（MDA-MB-231）和肺癌（KLN205）细胞系的抗增殖活性和凋亡作用。
将癌细胞分别在24小时、48小时和72小时用不同浓度（100、200、400、600、800 μM）的百里香酚处理。通过MTT法研究细胞活力，并用膜联蛋白V法测定凋亡情况。
该研究显示了百里香酚在PC-3、DU145、MDA-MB-231和KLN205癌细胞系中的剂量和时间依赖性细胞毒性作用。百里香酚以剂量依赖性方式在所有组中显著诱导凋亡。统计分析表明，与对照组相比，百里香酚处理的细胞系之间存在显著差异（p < 0.001）。
本研究中的数据表明，百里香酚在肺癌、乳腺癌和前列腺癌细胞系中具有凋亡和抗增殖特性。百里香酚未来可能成为一种潜在的治疗药物（图5，参考文献26）。
