Title:Antitumor Effects of L-citrulline on Hela Cervical Cancer Cell Lines
Volume: 22
Issue: 18
Author(s): Ceren Yildiz Eren*, Hulusi Goktug Gurer, Ozlem Ozgur Gursoy and Canan Vejselova Sezer
Affiliation:
- Eskisehir Acibadem Hospital, Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinic, Eskisehir, Turkey
Keywords:
L-citrulline, HeLa, anticancer effects, MTT, Annexin-V, migration assay.
Abstract:
Aim: Cervical cancer is the deadliest gynecological malignancy. This study aims to examine the anticancer
effects of L-citrulline on HeLa cell culture.
Materials and Methods: HeLa cells were cultured in complete Eagle's minimum essential medium. HeLa cells were
seeded in 96-well plates and incubated with L-citrulline. After incubation, MTT dye was added and incubated. Annexin-
V technique was used to test the apoptosis. The activated caspases of HeLa cells by L-citrulline exposure were
measured with the Caspase 3/7 technique. One-way variance analysis was conducted for statistical analysis by using
GraphPad Prism 6.0 for Windows.
Results: L-citrulline showed its toxicity on HeLa cells in a dose-dependent manner in application times of 24 and 48
hours. The IC50 dose of L-citrulline was 0.19 and 0.16 mg/mL at 24 and 48 hours, respectively. When HeLa cells were
exposed to an IC50 dose of L-citrulline for 24 hours, the percentages of the dead, early apoptotic, and late apoptotic
cells were detected to be 0.75%, 23.05%, and 12.75%, respectively. The differences in the wideness of the scratch area
were observed at the initial stage and after 24 hours of applying L-citrulline.
Conclusion: L-citrulline showed its toxicity on HeLa cells in a dose-dependent manner. Based on Annexin and Caspase
findings, it can be concluded that L-citrulline exerted a pro-apoptotic effect on HeLa cells in only a short exposure
time. L-citrulline also showed a migration inhibitory effect. The findings of this study indicate L-citrulline to be worthy
of investigation for its anticancer activities in vitro and in vivo, and as a candidate for cancer therapy.
