In vitro Assessment of Cytotoxic Activity of Hybrid Variety of Momordica charantia (Bitter Gourd)
Md. Ehsan Uddin Talukder, Farhana Momen, Rashu Barua, Samsad Sultana, Farhana Yesmin, Mohammad Sayedul Islam, Robiul Hasan Bhuiyan
Abstract
Momordica charantia (Family: Cucurbitaceae), commonly referred to as Bitter Gourd, Karela, and balsam pear, is a very familiar vegetable of Bangladesh and has long been used in traditional medicine to cure numerous illnesses. Three different extracts of a selected hybrid variety of M. charantia fruit from Bangladesh were prepared and screened to assess cytotoxic activity using the brine shrimp lethality test (BST). Gallic acid was used as a positive control. The LC50 value of standard gallic acid, ethanol, ethyl acetate, and petroleum ether extract from the fruits of Momordica charantia L. found 4.40 µg/ml, 125.89 µg/ml, 146.49 µg/ml, and 194.2 µg/ml, respectively. The ethanol extract demonstrated a prominent cytotoxic activity in comparison with the moderate cytotoxic activity of ethyl acetate and petroleum ether extract. The study results support the predominant presence of cytotoxic bioactive compounds in the more polar solvent of the fruit extract which can be beneficial for our health because of the numerous pharmacological activities of these compounds.