Tumoricidal effect of O - carboxymethyl chitin , N , O - carboxymethyl chitosan and 2 - phtalimido chitin evaluation with human tumour cell line

Chitin is a nitrogen-containing polysaccharide, related chemically to cellulose. It is a principal constituent of the exoskeleton crustaceans. Due to their biocompatibility and less toxic nature, it has been developed as new physiologically bioactive materials since they possess various biological activities. Chemical extraction of chitin from shells, of the white shrimp Parapenaeus longirostris (Lucas, 1846), produces a chitin with a high viscosity, a low molecular weight and a high degree of deacetylation. In the present study, chemical modifications of chitin produced chitosan, Ocarboxymethyl chitin, N,O-carboxymethyl chitosan and 2-phtalimido chitin. Also, cytotoxic activities of chitin derivatives were evaluated using the human cell line, MRC-5. Furthermore, anticancer activities of chitin derivatives were evaluated using the human leukaemia cell line, THP-1. The specific cytotoxicity of chitin derivatives to the tumour cell line was demonstrated, and the high antitumor effect of chitin derivatives was established. Furthermore, a specific interaction was suggested. Keywords—Anticancer activity, O-carboxymethyl chitin, N,Ocarboxymethyl chitosan, 2-phtalimido chitin, THP-1 and MRC-5 cell lines.