Antioxidant and Anticancer Activity of Mangosteen (Garcina mangostana L.) Leaf Extract against Human Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HepG-2) Cells

Antioxidants are compounds that have the ability to bind free radicals, which are known to contribute to the development of cancer, and the accumulation of free radicals in the body can trigger the growth of cancer cells. Numerous flavonoid compounds have been reported to have potent antioxidant activity, and mangosteen leaves contain these compounds, indicating the potential of their development to prevent cancer. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine mangosteen leaves’ antioxidant and cytotoxic activities against HepG-2 liver cancer cells using the ethanol extract of mangosteen leaves obtained by maceration. Cytotoxic activity testing was carried out using the MTT assay with eight different concentrations, namely 100, 50, 25, 12.5, 6.25, 3.125, 1.56, and 0.78 µg/mL. The flavonoid content in the mangosteen leaf extract was determined using UV-Vis spectrophotometry. This study showed that the ethanol extract of mangosteen leaves contained 11.8% flavonoids and exhibited potent antioxidant activity with an IC₅₀ value of 4.09 ± 0.04 ppm. The mangosteen leaf extract demonstrated cytotoxicity against Hep-G2 liver cancer cells, with an IC₅₀ value of 9.277 µg/mL, classifying it as cytotoxic. Based on the findings above, it can be concluded that mangosteen leaf extract contains flavonoids with antioxidant and cytotoxic activities.