Cell death by apoptosis induced by Ocotea indecora (Schott) Mez essential oil in different cancer cell lines.

Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the world. Plants from Ocotea genus have been studied for their biological activities. Here we evaluated the antitumor activity of Ocotea indecora essential oil in several cancer cell lines and its phytochemical composition. We performed cell viability using MTT (1000-31.25 μg/mL) using DMSO (negative) and carboplatin (positive) controls. Cytometric and morphological assays analysed cell death pathway. In vivo acute toxicity was assessed in mice (150, 300, and 900 mg/kg) and GCMC for phytochemical analysis. The oil showed sesquirosefuran as the main metabolite and was cytotoxic against all cell lines tested, mainly HEPG2 (human hepatoblastoma cell) (IC50=44.9 µg/mL), was selective (SI = 1.69) and tolerated in mice. Apoptosis is the main cell death pathway as indicated by the presence of active caspase 3/7 and morphological characteristics. In conclusion, the oil was effective against HEPG2 cells and could be considered for future cancer studies.