Toxicity Effect of Hypnea flagelliformis Algae on Cancerous Mitochondria Obtained from Rat Model of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Sep 21, 2026

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major worldwide public health concern and a highly lethal malignancy. This study examines whether extracts of the marine red alga Hypnea flagelliformis (methanolic, diethyl ether, and n-hexane) produce cytotoxicity toward HCC mitochondria. HCC was induced in rats using diethylnitrosamine (DEN) and 2-acetylaminofluorene (2-AAF), followed by evaluation of mitochondrial toxicity parameters. Extracts at 250, 500, and 1000 µg/ml showed significant toxicity in cancerous mitochondria with no reported impact on healthy mitochondria, suggesting therapeutic potential in HCC when combined with selected drugs.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages7

Reading Time18 min

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Introduction

Materials and Methods

Animals

RESEARCH ARTICLE Editorial Process: Submission:07/21/2024 Acceptance:12/14/2024 Toxicity Effect of Hypnea flagelliformis Algae on Cancerous Mitochondria Obtained from Rat Model of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Enayatollah Seydi1,2, Mahsa Barzegar3, Melika Nazemi4, Zhaleh Mohsenifar5, Nazanin Shahbazi6, Abbas Jafarian-Dehkordi3 *, Jalal Pourahmad7 * Abstract Background and objective: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is recognized as one of the major public health problems and deadly malignancies worldwide. Today, the use of compounds of natural origin in the treatment of cancer and other diseases has been of interest to researchers. Marine compounds such as algae have anti-cancer effects. In addition, Sea algae have nutritional value. This research is designed to investigate the cytotoxic effects of Hypnea flagelliformis (H. flagelliformis) extracts (methanolic, diethyl ether and n-hexane) on HCC mitochondria. Material and Method: HCC was induced by diethylnitrosamine (DEN) and 2-acetylaminofluorene (2-AAF) in rats. Then, toxicity parameters were evaluated. Results: The results showed that all H.flagelliformis extracts (250, 500 and 1000 µg/ml) significantly caused toxicity in HCC mitochondria, and no effect on healthy mitochondria was reported. Conclusion: The results indicate that the use of H. flagelliformis along with selected drugs in the treatment of HCC can help in the treatment of this cancer. Keywords: Carcinoma-hepatocellular-marine algae-hypnea-mitochondria-models-animal Asian Pac J Cancer Prev, 25 (12), 4273-4279 Introduction Cancer is known as one of the most important public health and mortality problems in the world. Cancer has imposed a heavy burden on public healthcare systems, especially in developed and developing countries [1, 2] . Statistics show that the incidence and mortality due to it are increasing worldwide. There are many approaches to treatment of cancer, but these methods have the ability to cause irreversible damage to healthy tissues around the tumor [3, 4]. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most important type of liver cancer and its incidence has increased in recent years [5, 6] . The incidence of HCCis higher in developing countries and hepatitis B (HBV) and C (HCV) are the most common risk factors. There are different approaches to treat HCC, but these approaches have not been successful and are associated with damage to normal tissue and cells. Therefore, there is a need for new treatment approaches that cause minimal damage to normal cells and tissues [5, 7, 8] . In recent years, products of natural origin have become an important source for the discovery of compounds with anti-cancer activity. Due to the fewer side effects of compounds of natural origin than compounds of chemical origin, the attention of cancer researchers has increased to natural compounds [4, 9-11] . Marine algae have been considered as natural marine products due to their many bioactive compounds. Marine algae have many pharmacological effects, including anti-cancer. Also, these compounds can increase the efficiency and improve the effects of anti-cancer drugs [1, 2, 12, 13] . The genus Hypnea is one of the most important algae that is economically important. Hypnea flagelliformis (H. flagelliformis) is one of the red algae that is widely found on the shores of Bandar Abbas (the south of Iran, Persian Gulf) . H. flagelliformis has many bioactive compounds that are involved in biological activities. Previous research has shown that H. flagelliformis can 1Department of Occupational Health and Safety Engineering, School of Health, Alborz University of Medical Sciences, Karaj, Iran. 2Research Center for Health, Safety and Environment, Alborz University of Medical Sciences, Karaj, Iran. 3Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School ofPharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Isfahan University ofMedical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran. 4Persian Gulf and Oman Sea Ecological Research Organization, Iranian Fisheri

FAQs

What was the study designed to investigate?

The study investigated the cytotoxic effects of Hypnea flagelliformis extracts on mitochondria from a rat model of hepatocellular carcinoma.

How was HCC induced in the rats?

HCC was induced using diethylnitrosamine (DEN) and 2-acetylaminofluorene (2-AAF).

What were the main findings about cancerous versus healthy mitochondria?

All H. flagelliformis extracts tested (250, 500, and 1000 µg/ml) significantly caused toxicity in HCC mitochondria, while no effect on healthy mitochondria was reported.

Sep 21, 2026

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