Evaluation of the Antioxidant Activities and Cytotoxicities of Selected Medicinal Herbs Using Human Hepatoma Cell Line (Hepg2)

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the hepatotoxicity as well as antioxidants activities of hydromethanolic extract of six common traditional species (Origanum vulgar, Pterocarya fraxinifolia, Ferula assafoetida, Artemisia dracunculus, Rosmarinus officinalis, and Valerian officinalis) in order to find a safe antioxidant source. Methods: This research project was performed at Toxicology and Animal Poisoning Research Center, University of Tehran (Tehran, Iran), in 2016. The HepG2 cells viability was examined by LDH and MTT techniques following treatment with different concentrations of selected herbal hydroethanolic extracts for 72 h. Furthermore, assessment of antioxidative properties of the extracts was carried out by various scavenging models including DPPH and FRAP. Results: The highest cytotoxicity was displayed by F. asafoetida extract (IC50= 67.3 µg/ml). R. Officinalis and A. dracunculus extracts were noted as non-toxic due to the high effective dose. Interestingly, V. officinalis extract indicated stimulating effects on cell growth/ proliferation with ED50 values of 20.9 µ/ml. The highest and lowest antioxidant capacities refer to R. officinalis and V. officials. In DPPH assay, the IC50 value of R. officinalis and V. officinalis extracts was found to be 39.82 and 371.77 µg/ml, respectively. FRAP values of R. officinalis and V. officials were 2754.07 and 561.14 µM/g, respectively. Conclusion: This study identified R. officinalis extract as a natural non-toxic agent with remarkable antioxidant potential in phytomedicine.