In vitro antioxidant, anticancer effect and GC-MS analysis of Barleria cuspidata F. heyne ex. nees.

In Ayurveda, Barleria cuspidata F. Heyne ex Nees” known as Bajradanti is the foremost and most valuable species in the genus which is used to heal the maceration of feet, stomachache, toothache, mouth sores, teeth problems. This study explored the GC-MS analysis, in vitro evaluation of the antioxidant properties using DPPH, FRAP, and ABTS assays, cytotoxicity profile, cell viability by MTT assay, and the antitumor effect of B.cuspidata Methanol Leaf (BCML) extract, on human oral carcinoma (KB) cell lines. The chemical composition of BCML extract showed 36 bioactive compounds and the major bioactive compound identified was Phthalic acid with a peak area of 29.88% and retention time of 20.34. The methanol leaf extract exhibited a relative scavenging activity compared to the standard ascorbic acid (AA) and gallic acid (GA) with the IC₅₀ values of 41.6±1.167μg/ml, 38.0±0.142μg/ml, and 41.8±1.184 μg/ml DPPH, FRAP, and ABTS assay respectively. MTT results indicated that BCML significantly reduced oral KB cell viability in a dose-dependent manner. The flow cytometry results of BCML after the Annexin V/FITC and PI staining showed a decrease in the expression of cell cycle regulatory factors and an increase in S phase cell counts. This proved BCML could be a reasonable candidate to suppress the oral KB cell lines by modifying the balance between cell proliferation and apoptosis which could be due to the presence of abundant secondary metabolites.