Abstract:

In this study, an experiment for cytotoxic activity was carried out on the methanol and water extracts of three species belonging to the Lamiaceae family (Thymus zygioides Griseb, Teucrium sandrasicum, Origanum sipyleum) collected from Turkey. A brine shrimp (Artemia salina L.) lethality test was established for the present study and the cytotoxicity was reported in terms of 50 % lethal concentration (LC50). The LC50 values of the extracts were calculated using an EPA Probit Analysis Program (version 1.5). The A. salina were hatched and the active shrimps were collected for use in the assay. Ten A. salina were added to different concentrations of the extracts, the surviving shrimps were counted after a period of 24 h and the lethality concentration LC50 was assessed. The water and methanol extracts of these plants showed cytotoxicity against brine shrimp. The cytotoxic activities of the extracts ranged from 34.66-643.652 µg/mL. The strongest cytotoxic activity were obtained from the methanol extract of T. zygioides. This significant lethality of the extracts from three species could be the source of potential cytotoxic components in these species but this will require further investigation.

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