Anti-mitotic Property of Piper betle crude ethanolic extract using Allium cepa Assay

Abstract

INTRODUCTION

In the Philippines, 7 adults die every hour and 8 children die daily because of cancer (Dizon, 2017). Cancer is a known disease that is caused by the uncontrollable division of cells also known as mitosis. It is a cell division that occurs predominantly in our body and can possibly produce mutations which can lead to uncontrollable cell division and eventually, can lead to cancer (Fajardo et al., 2017). For this reason, the researcher came up with the idea of using the anti-mitotic properties of Piper betel which contains a multitude of bio phenolics such as hydroxychavicol, eugenol, chavibetol, and piperols (Gundala and Aneja, 2014). These compounds have been found to inhibit mitosis.

METHODS

After the ethanolic crude extraction, the researcher used Allium cepa Assay which has two parts: its Macroscopic and Microscopic analysis. Three treatments were used: 720 Âμg/l, 360 Âμg/l and 180 Âμg/l) for the Allium cepa Assay. The cells were observed during the different phases of cell division. Data was analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) in one-way classification analysis using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, a software used to edit statistics data.

RESULTS

The different concentrations of the plant extract showed varying levels of anti-mitotic activities. The highest concentration 720 Âμg/ ml Piper betle crude ethanolic extract completely inhibited mitosis, thus having anti-mitotic property. While the other concentrations, 180 Âμg/l and 360 Âμg/ml Piper betle crude ethanolic extract exhibits moderate and little anti-mitotic activities, respectively. The results in the Macroscopic show that 0 Âμg/ml concentration has the longest root length. While growth rate of the roots decreased when 360 Âμg/ml concentration was used. The growth rate further decreased in the 720 Âμg/ml concentration. While in the microscopic test, the mitotic index, in the concentrations of 100% and 25% showed that there is no significant difference to the negative control, while the 50% showed that there is a significant difference to the negative control.

DISCUSSIONS

Based on the gathered data, Piper betle generally inhibited mitotic division. Thus, it has an anti-mitotic property and supports the research study regarding its significant antiproliferative activity on prostate cancer cells. Further investigation on the other phytochemical properties of the plant is recommended to explore its possibility of being an anti-cancer agent and its other uses in the field of medicine.