Purification, Fractionation of Terpenoid Extracts from Selected Red Algae and Analysis of Its Cytotoxicity Against A549, HeLa and HepG2 Cell Lines

Author(s): Sumayya S S, Lubaina A S and K Murugan

Abstract: Seaweeds contain a pool of bioactive compounds that had a broad range of biological activities, including anticancer activity. The presence of these active compounds in seaweeds is highly evident of their pharmaceutical potential. Various compounds extracted from seaweeds have been shown to eradicate or slow the progression of cancer. In the present study, the effect of purified terpenoid fractions from three red seaweeds (Hypnea musciformis, Kappaphycus alvarezii and Gracilaria dura) against three human cancer cell lines (A549, HeLa and HepG2) cytotoxicity was evaluated. The crude methanolic extracts of the selected red algae were first subjected to column chromatography followed by GC-MS analysis. The analysis of the purified fraction of H. musciformis revealed the presence of 8 major peaks of terpenoids whereas K. alvarezii and G. dura displayed 12 and 4 major peaks of terpenoids respectively. Further, the cytotoxicity of the purified fractions was carried out using MTT assay. Morphological anomalies were examined using phase contrast microscopy. All the purified terpenoids extracts revealed antiproliferative potential against the three cancer cell lines in a dose and duration dependent manner. G. dura terpenoids fraction showed significant inhibition as compared with the other red algae. The microscopic visuals showed outstanding morphological anomalies on the treated cancerous cell lines. Thus, it may be concluded that the terpenoids extract from the three red algae showed remarkable cytotoxicity against the investigated tumor cell lines which further confirms their antiproliferative potentialities.

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