Glaucium flavum Crantz. part v: Hypoglycemic activity of the aqueous extract

Identification and quantification of the main active anticancer alkaloids from the root of Glaucium flavum

Glaucium flavum is used in Algerian folk medicine to remove warts (benign tumors). Its local appellations are Cheqiq el-asfar and Qarn el-djedyane. We have recently reported the anti-tumoral activity of Glaucium flavum root alkaloid extract against human cancer cells, in vitro and in vivo. The principal identified alkaloid in the extract was protopine. This study aims to determine which component(s) of Glaucium flavum root extract might possess potent antitumor activity on human cancer cells. Quantitative estimation of Glaucium flavum alkaloids was realized by HPLC-DAD. Glaucium flavum effect on human normal and cancer cell viability was determined using WST-1 assay. Quantification of alkaloids in Glaucium flavum revealed that the dried root part contained 0.84% of protopine and 0.07% of bocconoline (w/w), while the dried aerial part contained only 0.08% of protopine, glaucine as the main alkaloid, and no bocconoline. In vitro evaluation of the growth inhibitory activity on breast cancer and normal cells demonstrated that purified protopine did not reproduce the full cytotoxic activity of the alkaloid root extract on cancer cell lines. On the other hand, bocconoline inhibited strongly the viability of cancer cells with an IC₅₀ of 7.8 μM and only a low cytotoxic effect was observed against normal human cells. Our results showed for the first time that protopine is the major root alkaloid of Glaucium flavum. Finally, we are the first to demonstrate a specific anticancer effect of Glaucium flavum root extract against breast cancer cells, which can be attributed, at least in part, to bocconoline.

Revealing the anti-tumoral effect of Algerian Glaucium flavum roots against human cancer cells

Glaucium flavum (G. flavum) is a plant from the Papaveraceae family native to Algeria where it is used in local traditional medicine to treat warts. G. flavum root crude alkaloid extract inhibited breast cancer cell proliferation and induced G2/M phase cycle arrest and apoptosis without affecting normal cells, which is a highly awaited feature of potential anti-cancer agents. G. flavum significantly reduced growth and vascularization of human glioma tumors on chicken chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) in vivo. The chromatographic profile of the dichloromethane extract of G. flavum root showed the presence of different constituents including the isoquinoline alkaloid protopine, as the major compound. We report for the first time that G. flavum extract may represent a new promising agent for cancer chemotherapy.