Phytobioactives from Alstonia Scholaris - An Elixir against Cancer

ABSTRACT

Plants and their derivatives have served as a means of therapy to humankind from time immemorial. These phytomolecules have a potency to be highly curative in function on various disorders and diseases. The same logic is been used by many traditional healers and practitioners and is evident from ancient scripts of Ayurveda. One such, less explored plant is Alstonia scholaris L., (Apocynaceae). The phenolics from the leaves and bark have been partially explored in folklore medicine but the probable mode of action is still unclear. Hence the current study aims at the exploration of the anti-cancer potency of phytobioactives from Alstonia scholaris. Qualitative phytochemical profiling of the leaves and bark, followed by polarity based hot extraction procedure (hexane, ethyl acetate, methanol), In vitro antioxidant studies (ABTS, nitric oxide, reducing power radical assays) and cytotoxic studies were performed on six different cell lines (Vero, L929, A549, MCF 7, U87 and Hela).

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