In vitro anti‑oxidant, cytotoxic and pro‑apoptotic effects of Achillea teretifolia Willd extracts on human prostate cancer cell lines

Background: The majority of Achillea species are the most important native economic plants of Anatolia. They include highly bioactive compounds, so they have therapeutic applications. Objective: In the present study, the aim was to investigate in vitro anti‑oxidant, cytotoxic and pro‑apoptotic effects of Achillea teretifolia Willd extracts (Turkish name: Beyaz civanperçemi). Materials and Methods: The anti‑oxidant potential of the extracts was analyzed by the free radical 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) and total phenolic content methods. 3‑(4,5‑dimethylthiazol‑2‑yl)‑2,5‑diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay was used to detect cytotoxicity of the extracts onhuman prostate cancer cell lines (DU145 and PC-3) and human gingival fibroblast (HGF) cells. mRNA expression levels of pro‑apoptotic (bax, caspase‑3) and anti‑apoptotic (bcl‑2) genes were measured by quantitative real‑time polymerase chain reaction. Results: The results showed that extracts exhibited a remarkable DPPH scavenging activity, and total phenolic content of the methanol extract was higher than that of the water extract. As time and concentration were increased, the methanol extract exhibited a more powerful cytotoxic effect on prostate cancer cells. In prostate cancer cells, the levels of mRNA expression of the bax and caspase‑3 genes were significantly up‑regulated (P < 0.05), whereas the expression of bcl‑2 was down‑regulated (P < 0.05). In HGF cells, there were no cytotoxic effect and apoptosis induction triggered by the extracts. Conclusion: The methanol extract had more powerful anti‑oxidant, cytotoxic and pro‑apoptotic effects than the water extract. The extracts could be good anti‑oxidant sources, and they might include anti‑cancer compounds triggering the cytotoxicity and the apoptosis on prostate cancer cells.