Study of the antileukemic activity of <i>Mimosa caesalpiniifolia</i> Benth. ethanolic extract and fractions

Abstract

<em>Mimosa caesalpiniifolia </em>Benth. is a native plant to northeastern Brazil, traditionally used in folk medicine, with several pharmacological activities reported including antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and antitumor. The present study evaluated the antileukemic potential of <em>M. caesalpiniifolia </em>Benth. ethanolic extract (EtOH) and its <em>n</em>-hexanic (HexF) and dichloromethane (DCMF) fractions. Previous analysis by our team revealed the constituents of high relative abundance in EtOH, HexF, and DCMF, like phytol (11.7%), lupeol (14.7%), and betulinic acid (70.3%), respectively. In the MTT cell viability test, EtOH, HexF, and DCMF induced dose-dependent cytotoxicity in human chronic myeloid cells (K562), with IC50 of 153.6 ± 0.1, 118.40 ± 0.2, and 40.0 ± 0.1 μg/mL, respectively (<em>p</em><0.05). Additionally, DCMF (6-800 μg/mL) presented minor toxicity against normal human erythrocytes and murine macrophage cells. DCMF induced similar antileukemic effects (IC50=64.2 ± 5.0 μg/mL) against human acute myeloid cells (HL-60). However, it did not exert antitumor activity on murine sarcoma (S180) cells (<em>p</em>>0.05).