Antitumor efficacy of Stachytarpheta mutabilis methanolic extract in MCF-7 cell line xenografts

Natural products are being increasingly considered as viable alternatives for anticancer therapy due to their inherent non-toxicity and safety profiles. The objective of this study was to investigate the in vitro and in vivo anticancer properties of the leaf extract of Stachytarpheta mutabilis. The preparation of methanol leaf extracts was conducted, followed by a subsequent analysis of phytochemical constituents. The cell viability assay was conducted using the MCF-7 cell line, and the results indicated that the extract exhibited cytotoxic effects on MCF-7, a cell line commonly used in breast cancer research. The analysis of the cell cycle revealed that cellular growth ceased at the Sub-G0 and G1 phase. The study employed methanol extracts at various concentrations to investigate the impact of tumour regression in a breast cancer model using athymic nude mice. The findings of the experiment conducted on athymic nude mice utilising a xenograft model revealed that the administration of a dosage of 400 mg/kg resulted in a significant inhibition of tumour growth, amounting to 57.88%. The results of the MTT3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay indicated that the methanol extract derived from Stachytarpheta mutabilis exhibited a statistically significant specificity (p<0.005) towards MCF-7 cells. The discovery of the anticancer activity and low toxicity of Stachytarpheta mutabilis extract is noteworthy, as no previous reports have documented such effects. In conclusion, this finding presents a valuable prospect for the future development of novel anti-cancer pharmaceutical candidates targeting the highly lethal breast cancer.