Serai Anti Kanser
Anticancer
effect of lemongrass oil and citral on cervical cancer cell lines
Aims:
The aim of the present study was to evaluate
the anticancer effect of lemongrass oil and citral emulsion on cervical cancer
cell lines (HeLa and ME-180) in vitro.
Settings and Design:
Citral is a very important component in
lemongrass oil. It is proved to have anticancer properties in various human
cancer cell lines.
Methods and Material:
DLS analysis revealed the average size of the
lemongrass oil emulsion to be 267 nm and the average size of the citral
emulsion to be 270 nm. The anticancer effect of both the emulsions was
determined by MTT assay, DCFH-DA method, Rh-123 and AO/EtBr-staining.
Statistical analysis used:
One-way ANOVA followed by DMRT taking p<0.05
to test the significant difference between groups.
Results:
The results summarize that lemongrass oil and
citral emulsions initiate the cancer cell death by decreasing cell
proliferation, increasing intracellular ROS, altering mitochondrial membrane
potential, and initiating apoptosis in HeLa and ME-180 cell lines. The present
findings of this study clearly demonstrate the involvement of oxidative
mechanism for the anti-proliferative effect in HeLa and ME-180 cell lines.
ME-180 being chemosensitive showed good results at lower concentrations of
citral (IC50 24 h 300 μg/ml), as compared to chemoresistant HeLa cells (citral
IC50 24 h 500 μg/ml). Whereas lemongrass oil exhibited better activity in both
the cell lines (IC50 24 h 200 μg/ml).
Conclusions:
All the results suggest lemongrass oil and
citral emulsion could be considered as potent candidates for anticancer agents.
Khasiat Serai
Chem Biol Interact. 2009 May 15;179(2-3):160-8.
doi: 10.1016/j.cbi.2008.12.004. Epub 2008 Dec 11.
Anticancer activity of an essential oil from
Cymbopogon flexuosus.
1
Indian
Institute of Integrative Medicine, Canal Road, Jammu 180001, India.
Abstract
The
essential oil from a lemon grass variety of Cymbopogon flexuosus was studied
for its in vitro cytotoxicity against twelve human cancer cell lines. The in
vivo anticancer activity of the oil was also studied using both solid and
ascitic Ehrlich and Sarcoma-180 tumor models in mice. In addition, the morphological
changes in tumor cells were studied to ascertain the mechanism of cell death.
The in vitro cytotoxicity studies showed dose-dependent effects against various
human cancer cell lines. The IC(50) values of oil ranged from 4.2 to 79
microg/ml depending upon the cell line. In 502713 (colon) and IMR-32
(neuroblastoma) cell lines, the oil showed highest cytotoxicity with IC(50)
value of 4.2 and 4.7 microg/ml, respectively. Intra-peritoneal administration
of the oil significantly inhibited both ascitic and solid forms of Ehrlich and
Sarcoma-180 tumors in a dose-dependent manner. The tumor growth inhibition at
200 mg/kg (i.p.) of the oil observed with both ascitic and solid tumor forms of
Ehrlich Ascites carcinoma was 97.34 and 57.83 respectively. In case of
Sarcoma-180, the growth inhibition at similar dose of oil was 94.07 and 36.97%
in ascitic and solid forms respectively. Morphological studies of the oil
treated HL-60 cells revealed loss of surface projections, chromatin
condensation and apoptosis. The mitochondria showed apparent loss of cristae in
the cells undergoing apoptosis. The morphological studies of Sarcoma-180 solid
tumor cells from animals treated with the oil revealed condensation and
fragmentation of nuclei typical of apoptosis. Morphological studies of ascites
cells from animals treated with the oil too revealed the changes typical of
apoptosis. Our results indicate that the oil has a promising anticancer
activity and causes loss in tumor cell viability by activating the apoptotic
process as identified by electron microscopy.
PMID: 19121295
Manfaat serai
A drink with as little as one gram of
lemon grass contains enough citral to prompt cancer cells to commit suicide in
the test tube according to new Israeli research.
At first, Benny
Zabidov, an Israeli agriculturalist who grows greenhouses full of lush spices
on a pastoral farm in Kfar Yedidya in the Sharon region, couldn’t understand
why so many cancer patients from around the country were showing up on his
doorstep asking for fresh lemon grass.
It turned out
that their doctors had sent them.
“They had been
told to drink eight glasses of hot water with fresh lemon grass steeped in it
on the days that they went for their radiation and chemotherapy treatments,”
Zabidov told ISRAEL21c. “And this is the place you go to in Israel for fresh
lemon grass.”
It all began when
researchers at Ben Gurion University of the Negev discovered last year that the
lemon aroma in herbs like lemon grass kills cancer cells in vitro, while
leaving healthy cells unharmed.
The research team
was led by Dr. Rivka Ofir and Prof. Yakov Weinstein, incumbent of the Albert
Katz Chair in Cell-Differentiation and Malignant Diseases, from the Department
of Microbiology and Immunology at BGU.
Citral is the key
component that gives the lemony aroma and taste in several herbal plants such
as lemon grass (Cymbopogon citratus), melissa (Melissa officinalis) and verbena
(Verbena officinalis.)
According to
Ofir, the study found that citral causes cancer cells to “commit suicide: using
apoptosis, a mechanism called programmed cell death.” A drink with as little as
one gram of lemon grass contains enough citral to prompt the cancer cells to
commit suicide in the test tube.
The BGU
investigators checked the influence of the citral on cancerous cells by adding
them to both cancerous cells and normal cells that were grown in a petri dish.
The quantity added in the concentrate was equivalent to the amount contained in
a cup of regular tea using one gram of lemon herbs in hot water. While the
citral killed the cancerous cells, the normal cells remained unharmed.
The findings were
published in the scientific journal Planta
Medica, which
highlights research on alternative and herbal remedies. Shortly afterwards, the
discovery was featured in the popular Israeli press.
Why does it work?
Nobody knows for certain, but the BGU scientists have a theory.
“In each cell in
our body, there is a genetic program which causes programmed cell death. When
something goes wrong, the cells divide with no control and become cancer cells.
In normal cells, when the cell discovers that the control system is not
operating correctly – for example, when it recognizes that a cell contains
faulty genetic material following cell division – it triggers cell death,”
explains Weinstein. “This research may explain the medical benefit of these herbs.”
The success of
their research led them to the conclusion that herbs containing citral may be
consumed as a preventative measure against certain cancerous cells.
As they learned
of the BGU findings in the press, many physicians in Israel began to believe
that while the research certainly needed to be explored further, in the
meantime it would be advisable for their patients, who were looking for any
possible tool to fight their condition, to try to harness the cancer-destroying
properties of citral.
That’s why
Zabidov’s farm – the only major grower of fresh lemon grass in Israel – has
become a pilgrimage destination for these patients. Luckily, they found
themselves in sympathetic hands. Zabidov greets visitors with a large kettle of
aromatic lemon grass tea, a plate of cookies, and a supportive attitude.
“My father died
of cancer, and my wife’s sister died young because of cancer,” said Zabidov.
“So I understand what they are dealing with. And I may not know anything about
medicine, but I’m a good listener. And so they tell me about their expensive
painful treatments and what they’ve been through. I would never tell them to
stop being treated, but it’s great that they are exploring alternatives and
drinking the lemon grass tea as well.”
Zabidov knew from
a young age that agriculture was his calling. At age 14, he enrolled in the
Kfar Hayarok Agricultural high school. After his army service, he joined an
idealistic group which headed south, in the Arava desert region, to found a new
moshav (agricultural settlement) called Tsofar.
“We were very
successful; we raised fruits and vegetables, and,” he notes with a smile, “We
raised some very nice children.”
On a trip to
Europe in the mid-80s, he began to become interested in herbs. Israel, at the
time, was nothing like the trend-conscious cuisine-oriented country it is
today, and the only spices being grown commercially were basics like parsley,
dill, and coriander.
Wandering in the
Paris market, looking at the variety of herbs and spices, Zabidov realized that
there was a great export potential in this niche. He brought samples back home
with him, “which was technically illegal,” he says with a guilty smile, to see
how they would grow in his desert greenhouses. Soon, he was growing basil,
oregano, tarragon, chives, sage, marjoram and melissa, and mint just to name a
few.
His business
began to outgrow his desert facilities, and so he decided to move north,
settling in the moshav of Kfar Yedidya, an hour and a half north of Tel Aviv.
He is now selling “several hundred kilos” of lemon grass per week, and has
signed with a distributor to package and put it in health food stores.
Zabidov has taken
it upon himself to learn more about the properties of citral, and help his
customers learn more, and has invited medical experts to his farm to give
lectures about how the citral works and why.
He also felt a
responsibility to know what to tell his customers about its use. “When I
realized what was happening, I picked up the phone and called Dr. Weinstein at
Ben-Gurion University, because these people were asking me exactly the best way
to consume the citral. He said to put the loose grass in hot water, and drink
about eight glasses each day.”
Zabidov is
pleased by the findings, not simply because it means business for his farm, but
because it might influence his own health.
Even before the
news of its benefits were demonstrated, he and his family had been drinking
lemon grass in hot water for years, “just because it tastes good.”
Komen bagus:
My mother
who died three years ago at the age of 104 used lemon grass while making tea.
We grow lemon grass at home and religiously use it every time we make tea. This
has been going on in our family since my great grandfather - nearly 130 years!
Lemon grass has been used in India for time immemorial in cooking, etc.
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