Roasting Extract of Handroanthus impetiginosus Enhances Its Anticancer Activity in A549 Lung Cancer Cells and Improves Its Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Effects in Normal Cells

Abstract

The family Bignoniaceae includes Handroanthus impetiginosus trees, which are sparsely distributed in the northeast of Brazil. Natural products play a vital role in the discovery of drugs for various diseases. Many plants have been used as sources of medicines because of their chemical diversity and potent bioactivity. Handroanthus impetiginosus has been used traditionally to cure a wide range of illnesses, such as cancer, oxidative stress, and inflammation. This work highlights the cytotoxicity, cell death, and routes of apoptosis in lung cancer cells (A549) and the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects of roasted Handroanthus impetiginosus (lapacho/taheebo) in normal cells. The cell viability assay indicated that puffing roasted taheebo is nontoxic to a normal cell line up to 500 µg/mL but significantly toxic to A549 cells. The roasted lapacho/taheebo also increases reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation in A549 lung cancer cells, and cellular apoptosis via a mitochondrial intrinsic pathway was confirmed. The roasted lapacho/taheebo significantly inhibited both colony formation and cell migration ability, highlighting its potential as an anticancer agent. Additionally, this study demonstrates that roasted taheebo enhanced the expression of genes for BAX accumulation and decreased Bcl-2 gene expression through the p53 signaling pathway. Furthermore, research on the anti-inflammatory properties of roasted taheebo revealed a strong NO inhibition as well as the inhibition of inflammatory mediators (TNF-α, iNOS, COX-2, IL-6, and IL-8) through the NF-κB signaling pathway. However, in H2O2-induced HaCaT cells, roasted taheebo extract significantly reduced oxidative stress by upregulating the level of expression of antioxidative markers (SOD, CAT, GPx, and GST) at 50 μg/mL. As a result, roasted taheebo justifies investigation in animal and clinical trials as a possible source of antioxidants, anti-inflammatory substances, and anti-cancer compounds.