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ORAL PRESENTATION / SÖZLÜ SUNUM

Comparative Cytotoxicity Evaluation of Aerial
and Root Extracts of Five Eryngium Species on HepG2 Cells

Semi Sertaç BAĞIRSAKÇI 1,3, * Arzu Aslı BAŞARAN Sinem Aslan-ERDEM
1,2
2
Sevcan YANGIN Ayhan FİLAZİ Begüm YURDAKÖK-DİKMEN
4
3
3

1 Ankara University, Graduate School of Health Sciences, Department of Pharmacology and
Toxicology, TÜRKIYE
2 Ankara University, Faculty of Pharmacy, Department of Pharmacognosy, TÜRKIYE
3 Ankara University, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Pharmacology and
Toxicology, TÜRKIYE
4 Ankara University, Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, TÜRKIYE

*Correspound Author: ssbagirsakci@ankara.edu.tr

The genus Eryngium (Apiaceae) comprises over 250 species distributed worldwide,
many of which have been used in ethnomedicine for their diuretic, anti-inflammatory,
antimicrobial, and wound-healing properties. Despite their ethnobotanical relevance, the
cytotoxic potential of Eryngium species—particularly in the context of liver cancer—remains
underexplored. In this study, we investigated the cytotoxic effects of 70% ethanolic
lyophilized extracts from both aerial and root parts of five Eryngium species—E. campestre,
E. bithynicum, E. billardierei, E. creticum, and E. falcatum—on HepG2 human liver carcinoma
cells. These species were selected due to their phylogenetic proximity within the genus, yet
they exhibit distinct morphological characteristics and ecological adaptations, providing a
comparative framework to evaluate species-specific and organ-specific differences in
cytotoxic activity. Cell viability was assessed through standard cytotoxicity assays, and the
results were reported as mean values with standard deviations. Among the tested samples,
the root extract of E. billardierei exhibited the strongest cytotoxic activity with the lowest IC₅₀
value (0.081 ± 0.004 mg/mL), suggesting significant potential for anticancer effects. In
contrast, the aerial extract of E. bithynicum showed the highest IC₅₀ value
(2.507 ± 0.852 mg/mL), indicating the weakest cytotoxic effect. Moderate cytotoxicity was
observed in the aerial extracts of E. billardierei (1.67 ± 0.718 mg/mL), E. creticum
(1.352 ± 0.085 mg/mL), and both root (1.341 ± 0.093 mg/mL) and aerial
(0.964 ± 0.294 mg/mL) extracts of E. falcatum. E. campestre showed relatively low IC₅₀
(0.586 ± 0.176 mg/mL) among aerial parts. Notably, none of the samples had IC₅₀ values
below 0.03 mg/mL, the threshold commonly associated with strong anticancer potential,
though E. billardierei root extract comes closest and warrants further investigation. Root and
aerial part comparisons revealed that the root extract of E. billardierei exhibited markedly
higher cytotoxicity than its aerial counterpart, highlighting significant organ-specific
differences in bioactive compound distribution. These findings suggest that both species-
specific and organ-specific factors play critical roles in determining the cytotoxic potential of

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