• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.364-369
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• 1995

Anticarcinogenic activity of Moutan radix for mouse ascites cancer induced by mouse Sarcoma 180 (S-180) cells was investigated. Methanol extract of Moutan radix including other folk medicinal plants (Taxus cuspidata, Curcuma longa, Artemisia capillaris, Ligrstri fructus, and Liriope platyphylla) used to remedy or cure many chronic human diseases like cancer was fractionated into hexane, chloroform ($CHCl_3$), ethylacetate (EtOAc), and butanol (BuOH) fractions. Anticarcinogenic activity of the fractions, exhibited a strong cytotoxicity for L1210 and S-180 cells, was examined for mouse ascites cancer induced by S-180 cells. Male ICR mice (7 mice/treatment, $5{\sim}6$ weeks of age, $23{\pm}1\;g$ were injected i.p. with S-180 cells ($1{\times}10^{7}\;cell/1\;ml$ PBS). One day later, each mouse was given 0.1 ml of 10% DMSO containing sample ($30\;{\mu}g/g$ body weight) every day for 10 consecutive days. Control mice were only given 0.1ml S-180 cells and 0.1 ml 10% DMSO. Mice treated with EtOAc fraction of Moutan radix showed 28.7 days of life, which is 167% of control mice's life. Based on the dose-dependant experiment mice treated with $30\;{\mu}g$ showed longer life relative to mice treated with ootherr doses (5, 15, $60\;{\mu}g$), and mice treated with $60\;{\mu}g$ exhibited toxic symptoms. Body weight of mice treated with Moutan radix was significantly reduced relative to that of control mice (p<0.05). GC-MS analysis in conjunction with silica-gel column chromatography revealed that the EtOAc fraction contained 2-methoxylphenol, benzoic acid, 1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)ethanone, 8-methyl-2,4(1H,3H)pteridinedione and 2,5-furan-dicarboxylic dimethyl ester as regards to the anticarcinogenic property of the EtOAc fraction. These results suggest that Moutan radix might be included as an anticarcinogenic medicinal plant for treatment of ascites cancer.