Antioxidant activity and anticancer effect of ethanolic and aqueous extracts of the roots of Ficus beecheyana and their phenolic components

Gow-Chin Yen ^a, Cheng-Shih Chen ^b, Wei-Tang Chang ^c, Mei-Fang Wu ^b, Feng-Tsung Cheng ^b, Duen-Kai Shiau ^b,d, Chin-Lin Hsu ^c,e,*

^a Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan

^b Department of Industrial Engineering and Systems Management, Feng-Chia University, Taichung, Taiwan

^c School of Nutrition, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan

^d Department of Dental Technology and Materials Science, Central Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taichung, Taiwan

^e Department of Nutrition, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan

This study aimed to investigate the antioxidant and anticancer effects of ethanolic and aqueous extracts of the roots of Ficus beecheyana (EERFB and AERFB) and their phenolic components. In this study, total phenolic content and antioxidant activity of EERFB were higher than those of AERFB. Major phenolic compounds in the extracts were gallic acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, p-coumaric acid, and rutin; which were identified by high-performance liquid chromatography. Flow cytometric analysis of HL-60 cells exposed to EERFB showed that the percentage of apoptotic cells increased in a dose-dependent manner. EERFB treatment resulted in the loss of mitochondrial membrane potential and induced the apoptosis of HL-60 cells through a Fas- and mitochondrial-mediated pathway. Finally, pretreatment with general caspase-9/-3 inhibitors prevented EERFB from inhibiting cell viability in HL-60 cells. Our finding suggests that EERFB is an agent that may have antioxidant activity and inhibit the growth of cancer cells.