Brine shrimp

Cancer, a disease characterized by uncontrolled proliferation of cells that have transformed from the normal cells of the body and is one of the major causes of death in developed and developing nations. Presently available treatment method, chemotherapeutic agents, suffers from drawback of toxicity such as bone marrow suppression, alopecia and vomiting. Its not within the reach of common man. Therefore challenging task is to identify quick and novel methods which can be of therapeutic value in human cancers. Plants have a long history and important role as a source of effective anti-cancer agents. Hence in the present study, one of the traditionally used plant, M.minuta was screened for cytotoxicity. Successive solvent extraction was carried out and the petroleum ether, chloroform, ethyl acetate, alcoholic and aqueous extracts of M.minuta were prepared. Extracts were subjected to Brine shrimp lethality assay and it was observed that % mortality increased gradually with the increase in concentration of the test samples. Ethyl acetate and alcoholic extracts which showed better cytotoxicty were further screened for their cytotoxicity towards breast cancer cell lines using MTT cell viability assay. In the same, ethyl acetate extract was found to be significantly cytotoxic towards cell lines compared to that of alcoholic extract which may be due to higher amount of phenolic compounds present in them. The results obtained in this study further supported the traditional usage of the drug and the activity of drug can be attributed to major bioactive phytochemical class; poly phenolics, present in the drug.

Clerodendrum indicum.(L.)Kuntze is commonly known as bharangi, roots and leaves are used in skin and digestive disorders by folk people. In Ayurvedic medicine same is used as cough and pitta suppressant. However, very less work is reported from this plant. The aim of the study in this paper was to evaluate its cytotoxic and antioxidant activity of leaf and bark extracts. Cytotoxic potential was explored using brine shrimp mortality assay and antioxidant potential of the extracts was explored using quantitative TLC based DPPH assay and Qualitative Radical scavenging DPPH assay. An attempt was made to isolate the active fraction of the plant from leaf extract. Out of four extracts   Methanol extracts of leaf (C.indicum) showed significant cytotoxic activity of 90% at the dose of 200µg/ml.  Maximum number of antioxidant bands were obtained in chloroform extract of the leaf sample. Methanol extract of leaf gave a flavonoids fraction which showed promising cytotoxic activity. Thus, study has provided lead and needs elaborate experimentation.