Anticancer activity of total flavonoids isolated from Xianhe Yanling Recipe (仙鹤延龄方)

Objective:To investigate the anticancer activity of the total flavonoids isolated from a herbal formula,Xianhe Yanling Recipe（仙鹤延龄方）,a recipe commonly used in cancer patients in China.Methods: The in vitro anticancer activity of the total flavonoids was determined using the 3-（4,5-dimethylthiazole-2-yl）-2,5- diphenyltetrazolium bromide（MTT） assay on three cancer cell lines:MCF-7（a human breast adenocarcinoma cell line）,HepG-2（a human hepatocellular carcinoma cell line） and ES-2（a human ovarian cancer cell line）. The in vivo anticancer effect of the total flavonoids was assessed in a mouse tumor model bearing H22-induced hepatocellular carcinoma,and cisplatin was used as a positive control.Results:The total flavonoids exerted a powerful inhibitory effect on the three cell lines,with 50%inhibiting concentrations(IC₅₀) of 24.948,31.569 and 6.923μg/mL,respectively.In vivo studies showed that the total flavonoids had dose-dependent inhibitory effects on hepatocellular carcinoma in mice.Conclusion:The total flavonoids from Xianhe Yanling Recipe have potential anticancer activity,and further researches and development are warranted.