TABLE II. Cytotoxicity of Aspidosperma nitidum extracts and fractions against a monkey kidney cell line (BGM) and a human hepatoma cell line (HepG2) determined by MTT expressed as the minimal lethal dose for 50% of cells (MDL 50 ).
| Crude extracts and fractions | MDL 50 (µg/mL) mean ± SD | |
|---|---|---|
| BGM | HepG2 | |
| Bark extracts a | ||
| Ethanolic | ≥ 2000 | 654 ± 40 |
| Methanolic-A | 964 ± 1.4 | 255 ± 9 |
| Methanolic-B | ≥ 2000 | ≥ 1000 |
| Methanolic-C | 427 ± 243 | 600 ± 14 |
| Fractions from MeOH-C b | ||
| Fraction FO III | 301 ± 175 | 62 ± 18 |
| Fraction FO IV | 89 ± 53 | 169 ± 50 |
| Precipitate | ≥ 2000 | 1103 ± 371 |
| Leaves extracts | ||
| Ethanolic | ≥ 2000 | ≥ 1000 |
| Acetonic | ≥ 2000 | ≥ 1000 |
| Aqueous | ≥ 2000 | ≥ 1000 |
| Branches extracts | ||
| Ethanolic | ≥ 2000 | 280 ± 30 |
| Aqueous | ≥ 2000 | ≥ 1000 |
a : the different crude extracts were prepared from plant material by static maceration at room temperature [methanol (MeOH)-A and MeOH-C] or by maceration with agitation at 40°C (MeOH-B); b : fractions from MeOH-C were obtained through an acid-base liquid-liquid partitioning protocol to produce alkaloid-rich fractions (Fig. 2); MTT: (2-methoxy-4-nitro-5-sulphophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium-5-carboxanilide; SD: standard deviation. Three tests were performed with each cell line.