Planta Med 2012; 78 - PD5
DOI: 10.1055/s-0032-1320363

Evaluation of the cytotoxic effects from carvacrol and two new analogues

TB Sardella 1, VB Silva 2, SCH Cavalcanti 2, PD Fernandes 1
  • 1Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Institute of Biomedical Science
  • 2Federal University of Sergipe, Pharmacy Department, Medicinal Chemistry Laboratory. Brazil

The Origanum vulgare is popularly known as "oregano" with several activities described. From the essential oil can be obtained the carvacrol (5-isopropyl-2-methylphenol), a phenolic monoterpene. Studies have shown various effects of carvacrol (i.e., antibacterial and antifungal). The aim of this work was to evaluate the cytotoxic effects of carvacrol and two new analogues (carvacryl acetate [CA] and carvacryl trichloroacetate [CTA]) against tumor cell lines (U-87, brain; K562, leukemic; Lucena, a leucemic cell line resistant to multiple drugs; Hep.G2, hepatomas) after 48h in culture, using the MTT method. Statistical analyses was performed by ANOVA and Bonferroni's test (*p<0.05). Results of IC50 (in µM) after 72h incubation are:

Cell Line

Vincristine

Carvacrol

CA

CTA

Hep.G2

0.03

>100

>100

>100

K562

1.3

0.9

0.97

0.94

Lucena

5.6

12.3

81

85

U-87

0.1

12

9

5

Carvacrol and analogues demonstrated a significant cytotoxic effect against some cell lines indicating that these molecules can be candidates for future studies in other models.