A study on the effect of Tamarindus indica kernel extracts on viability, proliferation, and induction of apoptosis in human ‌prostate cancer (LNCaP), colon cancer (HT-29), and fibroblast cell lines

Cancer is one of the leading causes of death worldwide, and its treatment is always associated with side effects such as drug resistance. So, there is a strong tendency for the identification of new herbal anti-cancer compounds.

In this study, a range of 0.5-12 µg/mL of hydroalcoholic extract of Tamarindus indica kernel and 5-Fluorouracil was applied to prostate cancer (LNCaP), colon cancer (HT-29) and normal fibroblast (HSkMC) cells for 24 hours. The cytotoxic effect of the extracts was measured by the MTT method. The rate of DNA synthesis and incidence of apoptosis was measured by BrdU and TUNEL assays, respectively.

Following treatment with the highest amount of the extract, the viability of prostate, colon, and fibroblast cells was reduced to 4.8, 65.1, and 60.5%, respectively. The IC50 for the three cell lines was 4.60, 17.0 and 13.79 μg/mL respectively. The rate of DNA synthesis also reduced by 32, 37 and 15% for prostate, colon and fibroblast cancer cells, respectively. The rate of apoptosis in LNCaP and HT-29 cells was 31 and 4%, respectively.

Collectively, the toxicity of the extract was higher for LNCaP cells than for the other two cells (p-value ˂0.01). Further studies in vivo and analysis of compounds in tamarind can lead to the identification of anti-cancer compounds from this plant.