Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris) and Cancer (anticancer research): evidence and sources

The Wnt signaling pathway is reported to be associated with lung cancer progression, metastasis and drug resistance, and thus it is an important therapeutic target for lung cancer. Plants have been shown as reservoirs of multiple potential anticancer agents. In the present investigation, the ethanolic leaf extract of Artemisia vulgaris ( AvL -EtOH) was initially analyzed by means of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to identify the important phytochemical constituents. The GC-MS analysis of AvL -EtOH exhibited 48 peaks of various secondary metabolites such as terpenoids, flavonoids, carbohydrates, coumarins, amino acids, steroids, proteins, phytosterols, and diterpenes. It was found that the treatment with increasing doses of AvL -EtOH suppressed the proliferation and migration of lung cancer cells. Furthermore, AvL -EtOH induced prominent nuclear alteration along with a reduction in mitochondrial membrane potential and increased ROS (reactive oxygen species) generation in lung cancer cells. Moreover, AvL -EtOH-treated cells exhibited increased apoptosis, demonstrated by the activation of caspase cascade. AvL -EtOH also induced downregulation of Wnt3 and β-catenin expression along with cell cycle protein cyclin D1. Thus, the results of our study elucidated the potential of bioactive components of Artemisia vulgaris in the therapeutic management of lung cancer cells.

Objective To evaluate the chemical composition and effects of Artemisia vulgaris (AV) hydroalcoholic extract (HEAV) on breast cancer cells (MCF-7 and SKBR-3), chronic myeloid leukemia (K562) and NIH/3T3 fibroblasts. Methods Phytochemical analysis of HEAV was done by high-performance liquid chromatography-mass (HPLC) spectrometry. Viability and cell death studies were performed using trypan blue and Annexin/FITC-7AAD, respectively. Ferrostatin-1 (Fer-1) and necrostatin-1 (Nec-1) were used to assess the mode of HEAV-induced cell death and acetoxymethylester (BAPTA-AM) was used to verify the involvement of cytosolic calcium in this event. Cytosolic calcium measurements were made using Fura-2-AM. Results HEAV decreased the viability of MCF-7, SKBR-3 and K562 cells (P 2+ release mainly from lysosomes in K562 cells (P 2+ chelator, decreased the number of non-viable cells treated with HEAV (P Conclusions HEAV is cytotoxic and activates several modalities of cell death, which are partially dependent on lysosomal release of Ca 2+ . These effects may be related to artemisinin and caffeoylquinic acids, the main compounds identified in HEAV.

In previous research, the authors demonstrated that the methanol extract of Artemisia vulgaris (AVM) has the ability to inhibit chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) cell proliferation. The aim of the present study was to determine and clarify the mechanism of action of AVM. BCR/ABL activation is present in >90% of CML cases. As a result, cells expressing different forms of BCR/ABL were recruited for the present study, including K562 (human wild-type) or TCCY-T315I (human imatinib-resistant) and the Ba/F3-(T315I/E279K/Y253H) (mouse BCR/ABL point mutation-transfected cells). The results revealed that AVM inhibited the phosphorylation of BCR/ABL and their subsequent molecular signals including AKT and MAPK activation. AVM induced the release of cleaved PARP and cleaved caspase-3 caused apoptosis and inhibited the viability of these cells. Interestingly, AVM appeared to be more sensitive to imatinib-resistant (T315I, Y253H, and E279K) than wild-type BCR/ABL cells, indicating its potential to overcome imatinib-resistant severe issues in CML. Moreover, the effects of various sub-fractions of AVM were then investigated in order to determine the optimal solvent for the identification of anticancer bioactive compounds. The results demonstrated that the ethyl acetate and chloroform fractions were more effective than the n-hexane and water fractions. It is thus concluded that AVM inhibits the activity of BCR/ABL and their subsequent molecular signals, including AKT and MAPK, resulting in cytotoxicity via apoptosis.

Artemisia vulgaris is one of the important medicinal plant species of the genus Artemisia, which is usually known for its volatile oils. The genus Artemisia has become the subject of great interest due to its chemical and biological diversity as well as the discovery and isolation of promising anti-malarial drug artemisinin. A. vulgaris has a long history in treatment of human ailments by medicinal plants in various parts of the world. This medicinal plant possesses a broad spectrum of therapeutic properties including: anti-malarial, anti-inflammatory, anti-hypertensive, anti-oxidant, anti-tumoral, immunomodulatory, hepatoprotective, anti-spasmodic and anti-septic. These activities are mainly attributed to the presence of various classes of secondary metabolites, including flavonoids, sesquiterpene lactones, coumarins, acetylenes, phenolic acids, organic acids, mono- and sesquiterpenes. Studies related to A. vulgaris morphology, anatomy and phytochemistry has gained a significant interest for better understanding of production and accumulation of therapeutic compounds in this species. Recently, phytochemical and pharmacological investigations have corroborated the therapeutic potential of bioactive compounds of A. vulgaris. These findings provided further evidence for gaining deeper insight into the identification and isolation of novel compounds, which act as alternative sources of anti-malarial drugs in a cost-effective manner. Considering the rising demand and various medical applications of A. vulgaris, this review highlights the recent reports on the chemistry, biological activities and biotechnological interventions for controlled and continuous production of bioactive compounds from this plant species.