Cytotoxic Effect of the Crude Alcoholic Extract of the Fruits of Citrullus Colocynthis on Human Hepatocyte Carcinoma (Hep-G2)

The Citrullus colocynthis L is a perennial herbaceous plant belonging to the family Cucurbitaceae. Several pharmacological investigations have been performed based on the medicinal application of Citrullus colocynthis. The anticancer and antidiabetic activities of fruit and seed extracts of Citrullus colocynthis have been studied. Newly developed anticancer/antitumor medications appear to have been developed based on the extracted chemicals from Citrullus colocynthis due to the high contents of cucurbitacins. The present study aimed to identify the cytotoxic effect of the crude alcoholic extract of plants of Citrullus colocynthis on the growth of human hepatocyte carcinoma (Hep-G2). The results of the chemical (preliminary) examination of the extract indicated that the fruits contain most of the secondary metabolites including Flavonoids, Tannins, Sapiens, Resins, Amino acids, Glycosides, Terpenes, Alkaloids, and Flavonoids. The toxicological effect of the crude extract was investigated by using six half dilutions concentrations of 20,10,5,2.5,1.25, and 0.625 µg/m at three exposure periods of 24,48, and 72 h using MTT testing. The toxicological effect of the extract appeared for all six concentrations in the Hep-G2 cell line. The highest concentration of 20 µg/ml had the highest percentage inhibition rate with a significant difference (P≤0.01) and reached 93.36 ±1.61 after 72 h of exposure. While the lowest concentration of 0.625 μg/ml was recorded rate of inhibition of 23.36 ± 2.34 after 24 h of exposure. The findings of the present study concluded that the Citrullus colocynthis is one of the most promising medicinal plants which effectively treats cancer through its inhibitory effect and fatal toxicity on cancer cells.