Induction of apoptosis in HeLa cells by ethanolic extract of Corallina pilulifera

Marine organisms are rich sources of new, biologically active compounds. Seaweeds have traditionally been used as food, but have also been used as folk medicine, particularly by coastal peoples. Recently, much attention has been paid to the anticancer activity of seaweed. Thus, we have screened organic extracts of seaweeds for their anticancer activity against human cell lines, and selected Corallina pilulifera as a candidate for use in treatment. The ethanolic extracts of Corallina pilulifera (EECP) showed cytotoxic activity against human cervical adenocarcinoma cell line, HeLa. The IC50 of EECP against the HeLa cells was 250 μg/ml. Treatment of HeLa cells with various concentrations of EECP resulted in growth inhibition and induction of apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner. In Western blot analysis, apoptosis in the HeLa cells was associated with the release of cytochrome C from mitochondria into the cytosol, activation of caspase-3 and caspase-8, and proteolytic cleavage of PARP (poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase). These results strongly suggest that EECP may be a potential candidate in the field of anticancer drug discovery.