Planta Med 2012; 78 - PJ152
DOI: 10.1055/s-0032-1321312

Production of extracts from olive by-products and evaluation of their cytotoxic/cytostatic activity

N Xynos 1, A Argyropoulou 1, P Samara 2, N Aligiannis 1, O Tsitsilonis 2, AL Skaltsounis 1
  • 1Department of Pharmacognosy and Natural Products Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis Zografou, 15771, Athens, Greece
  • 2Department of Animal and Human Physiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis Zografou, 15784 Athens, Greece

Over the years, several studies have related olive to a low incidence of several diseases, including cancer. This may be due to the phenolic compounds encountered in olive products. Recent studies have shown that the wastes produced during olive processing are valuable sources of phenols. In the present work, extracts were obtained from various by-products generated during olive processing, specifically: olive fruit debittering, olive oil mill waste, olive paste and olive leaves, and were chemically characterized. Furthermore, their cytotoxic/cytostatic effects were evaluated against a panel of various cancer cell lines as determined by MTT assays. Our results show that these extracts are rich in phenolic compounds, mainly oleuropein 1 and its degradation molecule hydroxytyrosol 2, and exhibit promising biological activities.