In vitro photoinduced cytotoxic activity of Citrus medica L. cv. Diamante peel oil and its coumarin citropten against two different type of melanoma models

Citrus medica L. (Rutaceae) was the first citrus fruit to come to the notice of Europeans and was for many years the only one known. Diamante citron, known as Italian and Calabrese, is the cultivar more diffused in Italy and more sought by industry. The cultivation is limited to only one area, Calabria, Southern Italy [1]. Melanoma is a malignant form of skin cancer that occurs in cells called melanocytes, which produce pigments that give skin its color. It is the most serious type of cancer of the skin. Each year in the Europe, more than 60,000 people melanoma. In some parts of the world, especially among Western countries, melanoma is becoming more common every year. In the United States, for example, the percentage of people who develop melanoma has more than doubled in the past 30 years [2]. The present study was undertaken to investigate the in vitro cytotoxic activity of C. medica L. cv. Diamante peel oil and its coumarin citropten after UV activation at 365 nm. For this purpose two different models were chosen: A375 and C32 cell lines. The inhibitory concentration 50 (IC50) was estimated for each cell line by SRB assay [3]. These activity have not been scientifically investigated until now. Citrus medica L. cv. Diamante was submitted to hydrodistillation and analyzed by GC-MS. Diamante citron oil exhibited an interesting selective cytotoxicity against amelanotic melanoma model A375 with an IC50 of 89.81 microg/mL on the contrary its coumarin citropten exhibited a slight activity with a percentage of inhibition of 37% at 100 microg/mL.

Citrus medica L. (Rutaceae) was the first citrus fruit to come to the notice of Europeans and was for many years the only one known. Diamante citron, known as Italian and Calabrese, is the cultivar more diffused in Italy and more sought by industry. The cultivation is limited to only one area, Calabria, Southern Italy [1]. Melanoma is a malignant form of skin cancer that occurs in cells called melanocytes, which produce pigments that give skin its color. It is the most serious type of cancer of the skin. Each year in the Europe, more than 60,000 people melanoma. In some parts of the world, especially among Western countries, melanoma is becoming more common every year. In the United States, for example, the percentage of people who develop melanoma has more than doubled in the past 30 years [2]. The present study was undertaken to investigate the in vitro cytotoxic activity of C. medica L. cv. Diamante peel oil and its coumarin citropten after UV activation at 365 nm. For this purpose two different models were chosen: A375 and C32 cell lines. The inhibitory concentration 50 (IC50) was estimated for each cell line by SRB assay [3]. These activity have not been scientifically investigated until now. Citrus medica L. cv. Diamante was submitted to hydrodistillation and analyzed by GC-MS. Diamante citron oil exhibited an interesting selective cytotoxicity against amelanotic melanoma model A375 with an IC50 of 89.81 g/mL on the contrary its coumarin citropten exhibited a slight activity with a percentage of inhibition of 37% at 100 g/mL. References [1] F. Conforti, G. Statti, R. Tundis, M.R. Loizzo, F. Menichini. Phytoter. Res., 2007, 21, 427433; [2] H.E Karim-Kos, E. de Vries, I. Soerjomataram, V. Lemmens, S. Siesling, J.W. Coebergh. Eur. J. Cancer. 2008, In Press; [3] M.R. Loizzo, R. Tundis, G. Statti, F. Menichini, P.J. Houghton. J. Pharm. Pharmacol. 2005, 57, 897-902.