Cytotoxic effects of Agrimonia eupatoria L. against cancer cell lines in vitro

The study was conducted to evaluate anti-tumor (human cervical cancer; HeLa and Rhabdomyosarcoma; RD cell lines and a primary cell culture; mouse embryo fibroblast; MEF) potentials of Agrimonia eupatoria L. extracts (aqueous and methanol). Five concentrations (6.0, 12.0, 24.0, 48.0 and 96.0 μg/ml) of each plant extract were assessed through either three incubation time periods (24, 48 and 72 h) for HeLa and RD cell lines, or one incubation time period (48 h) for MEF cells. The results revealed that the five concentrations of plant extracts showed anti-tumor properties in a concentration-dependent manner, and the methanol extract recorded better values of percentage of growth inhibition (PGI) than aqueous extract in HeLa and RD cell lines, while, less PGI values were recorded in the MEF cells. Among these concentrations, 96.0 μg/ml was the most effective in producing PGI in RD and HeLa cancer cell lines for the three investigated time periods.