Comparative Screening of Cytotoxic Potential of Berberis aristata and Senna alexandrina Extracts

Authors

• Rida Noor Akhtar, Department of Zoology, GC University, Lahore, PakistanFollow
• Javaria Zahoor, Department of Zoology, GC University, Lahore, Pakistan
• Rizwan Ullah Khan, Department of Zoology, GC University, Lahore, Pakistan
• Aziz Ullah, Department of Zoology, GC University, Lahore, Pakistan
• Naila Malkani, Department of Zoology, GC University, Lahore, PakistanFollow

Abstract

Medicinal plants provide a safe and efficient source of drugs for cancer treatment. Berberis aristata and Senna alexandrina are traditionally used to treat several ailments because they contain compounds with antimicrobial, antitoxic, anti-inflammatory, and other properties. The objective of the study was to prepare crude ethanolic extracts of B. aristata and S. alexandrina and to determine their cytotoxic potential against cancer cells. Ethanolic extracts were prepared for both plants. Hepatocellular carcinoma cells (HepG2) were used for all assays. The cytotoxicity of extracts was determined by 3‑(4,5‑Dimethylthiazol‑2‑yl)‑2,5‑diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay using various concentrations of extracts. The obtained sub-lethal concentrations were used to analyze the expression of cell cycle regulators (p53, p21) and apoptosis caspases (Cas-4 and Cas-5) at the mRNA level by qPCR. The cytotoxicity assay showed that cell viability decreased with increasing concentrations of both plant extracts. B. aristata was, however, more effective than S. alexandrina in causing cytotoxicity. Expression analysis by qPCR revealed that p53 was overexpressed in plant extract-treated groups compared to untreated cells. The expression of p21, however, was inconsistent across all treatments. Expression of Cas-4 and Cas-5 was higher in plant extract-treated groups than in the control. B. aristata and S. alexandrina crude extracts were efficient in causing toxicity to the cancer cells, possibly by interfering with the expression of cell cycle and apoptosis regulator genes.

Article History

Received: Jan 15, 2025; Accepted: June 24, 2026; Published: June 30, 2026

Recommended Citation

Akhtar, R. N., Zahoor, J., Khan, R. U., Ullah, A., & Malkani, N. (2026). Comparative Screening of Cytotoxic Potential of Berberis aristata and Senna alexandrina Extracts, Journal of Bioresource Management, 13 (2).