Anticancer Activity of Some Filamentous Cyanobacterial Isolates against HepG2 and MCF-7 Cancer Cell lines

Cyanobacteria represent a rich source of a wide array of bioactive metabolites that are largely unexplored, and some of these metabolic products are proved to be potent as anticancer drug. Five filamentous isolates namely Arthrospira platensis, Leptolyngbya boryana, Leptolyngbya sp, Nostoc punctiforme, and Oscillatoria sp were identified morphologically using scanning electron microscope and on molecular basis using 16S rRNA as a marker. Organic extracts of these isolates were screened for their cytotoxicity against human hepatocellular carcinoma cell line (Hep-G2) and human breast adenocarcinoma cell line (MCF-7). Extracts of four isolates namely Nostoc punctiforme, Oscillatoria sp, Arthrospira platensis, and Leptolyngbya sp were found to have cytotoxic effect against Hep-G2 cell line with IC50 value of 12.75,13.5,14, and 15 µg ml-1, respectively. On basis of undiluted concentration used in this study (100 µg ml-1) the crude extract of Leptolyngbya sp, showed the maximum inhibitory percentage compared to control against Hep-G2 cell line by 71.3%. The extracts of the same four isolates showed more cytotoxic effect against MCF-7 cell line with IC50 value of 10.15, 10.25, 12.1, and 14.5 µg ml-1 for Leptolyngbya sp, Nostoc punctiforme, Arthrospira platensis, and Oscillatoria sp, respectively. The maximum inhibitory percentage against MCF-7 cell line compared to control was 88.3% by undiluted concentration of Arthrospira platensis. Results obtained from this study revealed that four extracts of cyanobacteria are considered a source of promising compounds against liver and breast cancer, also this study is considered the first report of anticancer activity of these cyanobacterial isolates.