Date of Defense
15-11-2024 10:30 AM
Location
E1-1060
Document Type
Thesis Defense
Degree Name
Master of Science in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology
College
College of Science
Department
Biology
First Advisor
Prof. Rabah Iratni
Keywords
gastric cancer, safranal, gastric adenocarcinoma, drug discovery, integrative therapies, apoptosis
Abstract
Despite the fact that gastric cancer patients are indispensable to conventional radiation and chemotherapy, the detrimental side effects of those approaches prompt cancer research to seek new integrative treatments. In this respect, safranal (SAF) stands out as a complementary phytotherapeutic drug with exceptional anticancer properties. Concurring studies have shown that SAF is negatively associated with several cancer types, yet its potential therapeutic impact on gastric cancer remains vastly obscure. Thus, this dissertation sought to investigate SAF's prospective tumoricidal ability and its underlying mechanisms of action on gastric cancer in vitro. Herein, the study evaluated the cytotoxicity of SAF on human adenocarcinoma cell lines (AGS and NCI-N87), focusing on the drug inhibitory activity against AGS migration, colonization, cell cycle, and apoptosis. The results revealed that SAF significantly reduced the viability of both cell lines, disrupting their sustained proliferation and survival ability. Significantly, SAF caused cytological changes in AGS cells by inducing vacuolation and senescence-like morphologies. In addition, treatment with SAF impaired the migration and restricted colonization abilities in AGS cells, eliminating their metastatic movement. Simultaneously, SAF hindered the cell cycle progression by forcing a cycle arrest in the mitotic phase, terminating AGS's sustained proliferative life span. In parallel, treatment with SAF triggered the apoptotic machinery and its associated signal transduction pathways in AGS cells. This study compellingly confirms the efficacy of SAF as a potential anticancer compound and further supports its pharmaceutical application in cancer treatment in the battle against gastric malignancy.
Included in
IN VITRO INVESTIGATION OF THE POTENTIAL THERAPEUTIC IMPLICATIONS OF SAFRANAL ON GASTRIC CANCER
E1-1060
Despite the fact that gastric cancer patients are indispensable to conventional radiation and chemotherapy, the detrimental side effects of those approaches prompt cancer research to seek new integrative treatments. In this respect, safranal (SAF) stands out as a complementary phytotherapeutic drug with exceptional anticancer properties. Concurring studies have shown that SAF is negatively associated with several cancer types, yet its potential therapeutic impact on gastric cancer remains vastly obscure. Thus, this dissertation sought to investigate SAF's prospective tumoricidal ability and its underlying mechanisms of action on gastric cancer in vitro. Herein, the study evaluated the cytotoxicity of SAF on human adenocarcinoma cell lines (AGS and NCI-N87), focusing on the drug inhibitory activity against AGS migration, colonization, cell cycle, and apoptosis. The results revealed that SAF significantly reduced the viability of both cell lines, disrupting their sustained proliferation and survival ability. Significantly, SAF caused cytological changes in AGS cells by inducing vacuolation and senescence-like morphologies. In addition, treatment with SAF impaired the migration and restricted colonization abilities in AGS cells, eliminating their metastatic movement. Simultaneously, SAF hindered the cell cycle progression by forcing a cycle arrest in the mitotic phase, terminating AGS's sustained proliferative life span. In parallel, treatment with SAF triggered the apoptotic machinery and its associated signal transduction pathways in AGS cells. This study compellingly confirms the efficacy of SAF as a potential anticancer compound and further supports its pharmaceutical application in cancer treatment in the battle against gastric malignancy.