In vitro evaluation of antioxidant and anti-proliferative activities of Gypsophila sphaerocephala (Caryophyllaceae) extracts together with their phenolic profiles

This study was designed to investigate the antioxidant and antiproliferative activities of water and methanol extracts of endemic plant Gypsophila sphaerocephala subsp cappadocica in conjuction with phenolic profiles. Individual phenolics of the extracts were identified and quantified by RP-HPLC analysis. Antioxidant potentials of the extracts were evaluated by DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) and ABTS [2,2′-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)] radical scavenging capacity tests, cupric ion reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC) method and Fe2+ chelating assay. Antiproliferative activities of the extracts were tested against MCF-7 (breast adenocarcinoma), HT-29 (colorectal adenocarcinoma) and HepG2 (hepatocellular carcinoma) cell lines. RP-HPLC analysis showed that methanol extract was richer than water extract in terms of phenolic content. In parallel to the phenolic contents, methanol extract showed higher antioxidant activity than water extract by DPPH, CUPRAC and Fe2+ chelating tests while water extract exhibited higher activity by ABTS method. Moreover, methanol extract displayed 1.8-fold, 4.3-fold and 2.6-fold more antiproliferative activity than water extract against MCF-7 cells, HepG2 cells and HT-29 cells, respectively. However, both extracts were found to show moderate antioxidant and antiproliferative activity compared to positive controls. These results suggest that Gypsophila sphaerocephala may be used as a promising source for food and nutraceutical industries due to its considerable antioxidant and antiproliferative potentials together with its rich phenolic content.