Apoptotic Activity of Protopine against Human Breast Cancer Cell Lines: An in vitro Study

Background Breast Cancer continues to rank among all cancer types as the most dangerous malignancies, accounting for a significant portion of cancer-associated mortalities among women globally. Additionally, the number of breast cancer cases that are identified each year is rising globally. After surgery or radiation, the typical therapies entail chemotherapy which is followed by endocrine therapy. However, breast cancer is extremely resistant to therapies, which causes it to recur. As a result, emphasis is being placed on the development of complementary medicines with fewer adverse effects that are obtained from plants. An isoquinoline alkaloid, Protopine, possesses an array of biological properties, including anti-tumor efficacy against several malignancies. Materials and Methods In this work, the anti-carcinogenic property of Protopine against the MDA-MB-231 cells has been investigated. The impact of Protopine on cell growth, apoptosis, ROS accumulation, and apoptotic marker levels was investigated. Doxorubicin was employed as the positive control drug in the studies. Results The effect of Protopine on cell growth demonstrated its cytotoxic property was elevated dose-dependently and IC50 concentration was selected for additional work. The AO/EB and DAPI staining was performed to examine morphological alterations concerning apoptotic cell death. Additionally, Protopine augmented the ROS accumulation and induced DNA damage in Protopine-treated cells. The caspase levels were also increased upon Protopine treatment. Discussion and Conclusion The outcomes highlight that Protopine remarkably inhibited cell growth by augmenting the ROS levels, inducing DNA fragmentation and apoptosis, leading to cell death by caspase-dependent pathway. Thus, Protopine could be possibly employed as an effective anti-cancer alternative for breast cancer treatment.