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  1. Namvar F, Baharara J, Mahdi AA
    Indian J Clin Biochem, 2014 Jan;29(1):13-20.
    PMID: 24478544 DOI: 10.1007/s12291-013-0313-4
    In the present study, the effect of red (Gracillaria corticata), green (Ulva fasciata) and brown (Sargassum ilicifolium) seaweeds alcoholic extract, against five important human cancer cell lines (MCF-7, MDA-MB-231, HeLa, HepG2, and HT-29) proliferation, apoptosis and cell cycle arrest were evaluated. The reducing activity and total polyphenol content were also investigated. MTT assay was used for cytotoxicity test. Morphological alterations were examined using phase contrast, fluorescent and electron microscopy. All the extracts were antiproliferative against all the cancer cell lines, dose-dependently, with G. corticata methanol extract (GCME) having the greatest inhibition activity against MCF-7 cell line. The percentage of apoptosis increased from 18 to 78 %. The cell cycle analysis also showed that GCME can induce apoptosis which confirm by TEM. Algal extract reducing activities were as follows: G. corticata > S. ilicifolium > U. fasciata. The GCME is a good source of potential complementary and alternative functional food for prevention and treatment of cancer.
  2. Baharara J, Amini E, Namvar F
    Avicenna J Med Biotechnol, 2016 Jan-Mar;8(1):29-35.
    PMID: 26855733
    Marine organisms provide appreciable source of novel bioactive compounds with pharmacological potential. There is little information in correlation with anti-cancer activities of brittle star. In the present study, anti-neoplastic efficacy of Ophiocoma erinaceus methanol extract against human cervical cancer cells was investigated.
  3. Baharara J, Namvar F, Mousavi M, Ramezani T, Mohamad R
    Molecules, 2014;19(9):13498-508.
    PMID: 25255752 DOI: 10.3390/molecules190913498
    Angiogenesis, which is required for physiological events, plays a crucial role in several pathological conditions, such as tumor growth and metastasis. The use of plant extracts is a cost effective and eco-friendly way to synthesize nanoparticles. In the present study, we investigated the anti-angiogenesis properties of silver nanoparticles synthesized using Saliva officinalis extract on chick chorioalantoic membrane. The production of nanoparticles was confirmed by the color change from yellow to brown observed after approximately 3 h at 37 °C. Then, the nanoparticles were characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy, FTIR, and TEM. The UV-visible spectroscopy results showed that the surface plasmon resonance band for AgNPs was around 430 nm. The intensity of the AgNP-specific absorption peak improved with an increase of 0.5 mL of extract into 10 mL of AgNO3 (2.5 mM). The FTIR results showed good interaction between the plant extracts and AgNPs. The TEM images of the samples revealed that the NPs varied in morphology and size from 1 to 40 nm; the average was recorded at 16.5 ± 1.2 nm. Forty Ross fertilized eggs were divided into four groups; the control and three experimental groups. On the 8th day, gelatin sponges containing albumin were placed on the chorioalantoic membrane and soaked with different concentrations of NPs. On the 12th day, all the cases were photographed using a photostereomicroscope. The number and the lengths of the vessels were measured using Image J software. The crown rump (CR) and weight of the embryo were also recorded. Then the hemoglobin content was measured using Drabkin's reagent kit for quantification of the blood vessel formation. According to the data analysis, the number and length of the blood vessels, as well as the CR and weight of the embryos reduced significantly compared to the control (p < 0.05), dose dependently. The total hemoglobin was quantified as an indicator of the blood vessel formation. The hemoglobin content in the treated samples with AgNPs decreased, which showed its inhibitory effect on angiogenesis.
  4. Baharara J, Namvar F, Ramezani T, Hosseini N, Mohamad R
    Molecules, 2014 Apr 15;19(4):4624-34.
    PMID: 24739926 DOI: 10.3390/molecules19044624
    Silver nanoparticles display unique physical and biological properties which have attracted intensive research interest because of their important medical applications. In this study silver nanoparticles (Ab.Ag-NPs) were synthesized for biomedical applications using a completely green biosynthetic method using Achillea biebersteinii flowers extract. The structure and properties of Ab.Ag-NPs were investigated using UV-visible spectroscopic techniques, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), zeta potential and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometers (EDS). The UV-visible spectroscopic analysis showed the absorbance peak at 460 nm, which indicates the synthesis of silver nanoparticles. The average particle diameter as determined by TEM was found to be 12±2 nm. The zeta potential analysis indicated that Ab.Ag-NPs have good stability EDX analysis also exhibits presentation of silver element. As angiogenesis is an important phenomenon and as growth factors imbalance in this process causes the acceleration of several diseases including cancer, the anti-angiogenic properties of Ab.Ag-NPs were evaluated using the rat aortic ring model. The results showed that Ab.Ag-NPs (200 μg/mL) lead to a 50% reduction in the length and number of vessel-like structures. The synthesized silver nanoparticles from the Achillea biebersteinii flowers extract, which do not involve any harmful chemicals were well-dispersed and stabilized through this green method and showed potential therapeutic benefits against angiogenesis.
  5. Baharara J, Namvar F, Ramezani T, Mousavi M, Mohamad R
    Molecules, 2015 Feb 05;20(2):2693-706.
    PMID: 25665064 DOI: 10.3390/molecules20022693
    Silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs), the most popular nanoparticles, possess unique properties. Achillea biebersteinii is a plant of the Asteraceae family rich in active antitumor components. The aim of this research was the characterization and investigation of the cytotoxic properties of Ag-NPs synthesized using A. biebersteinii flower extract, on a human breast cancer cell line. The Ag-NPs were synthesized after approximately 180 min of reaction at 40 °C, then they were characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The anti-apoptosis effect of Ag-NPs on the MCF-7 cell line was investigated by MTT assay, DAPI and acridine orange staining and caspase activity. The transcriptional expression of bax, bcl-2, caspase-3, -8 and -9 were also evaluated by RT-PCR. The TEM images revealed that the Ag-NPs morphology had a different shape. The DLS indicated that the average hydrodynamic diameter of the biosynthesized Ag-NPs was around 12 nm. By UV-visible spectroscopy the strongest absorbance peak was observed at 460 nm. The FTIR results also showed interaction between the plant extract and Ag-NPs due to the similarity in the peak patterns. The EDS results showed that Ag-NPs display an absorption peak at 3 keV, indicating the presence of the element silver. The Ag-NPs caused a dose-dependent decrease in cell viability, fragmentation in nucleic acid, inhibited the proliferation and induction of apoptosis on MCF-7 by suppressing specific cell cycle genes, and simulation programmed cell dead genes. Further investigation is required to establish the potential of this novel and promising approach in cancer therapy.
  6. Rasti H, Parivar K, Baharara J, Iranshahi M, Namvar F
    Iran J Pharm Res, 2017;16(1):366-379.
    PMID: 28496490
    This study presents the first ever data of extracting chitin from the Chiton shell, which was then converted to the soluble chitosan by soaking in the 45% NaOH solution. The obtained chitin and chitosan were characterized by the seven different methods. Antioxidant activity of the extracted chitosan was also evaluated using the two methods. The shell content was divided into calcium carbonate (90.5 %), protein (5.2%), and chitin (4.3 %). Due to the results of element analysis and 1H NMR, the final degree of deacetylation of chitosan was 90%. Surprisingly, a significant amount of Fe was accidentally found in the shell after demineralization, and removed from the solution through the filtering. Nonetheless, remained Fe in the extracted chitin and chitosan was 20 times higher than those previously reported from the shell of shrimps and crabs. Presence of this amount of Fe could describe why the produced chitosan was darker compared to the commercial chitosan. Antioxidant activity tests showed that the IC50 of the extracted chitosan was higher than one estimated for the commercial chitosan. Antioxidant activity of the extracted chitosan is even better than the commercial version and may be used in pharmaceutical industry as a source of antioxidant.
  7. Namvar F, Rahman HS, Mohamad R, Baharara J, Mahdavi M, Amini E, et al.
    Int J Nanomedicine, 2014;9:2479-88.
    PMID: 24899805 DOI: 10.2147/IJN.S59661
    Magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe3O4 MNPs) are among the most useful metal nanoparticles for multiple applications across a broad spectrum in the biomedical field, including the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. In previous work, we synthesized and characterized Fe3O4 MNPs using a simple, rapid, safe, efficient, one-step green method involving reduction of ferric chloride solution using brown seaweed (Sargassum muticum) aqueous extract containing hydroxyl, carboxyl, and amino functional groups mainly relevant to polysaccharides, which acts as a potential stabilizer and metal reductant agent. The aim of this study was to evaluate the in vitro cytotoxic activity and cellular effects of these Fe3O4 MNPs. Their in vitro anticancer activity was demonstrated in human cell lines for leukemia (Jurkat cells), breast cancer (MCF-7 cells), cervical cancer (HeLa cells), and liver cancer (HepG2 cells). The cancer cells were treated with different concentrations of Fe3O4 MNPs, and an MTT (3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5 diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) assay was used to test for cytotoxicity, resulting in an inhibitory concentration 50 (IC50) value of 23.83±1.1 μg/mL (HepG2), 18.75±2.1 μg/mL (MCF-7), 12.5±1.7 μg/mL (HeLa), and 6.4±2.3 μg/mL (Jurkat) 72 hours after treatment. Therefore, Jurkat cells were selected for further investigation. The representative dot plots from flow cytometric analysis of apoptosis showed that the percentages of cells in early apoptosis and late apoptosis were increased. Cell cycle analysis showed a significant increase in accumulation of Fe3O4 MNP-treated cells at sub-G1 phase, confirming induction of apoptosis by Fe3O4 MNPs. The Fe3O4 MNPs also activated caspase-3 and caspase-9 in a time-response fashion. The nature of the biosynthesis and therapeutic potential of Fe3O4 MNPs could pave the way for further research on the green synthesis of therapeutic agents, particularly in nanomedicine, to assist in the treatment of cancer.
  8. Namvar F, Mohamad R, Baharara J, Zafar-Balanejad S, Fargahi F, Rahman HS
    Biomed Res Int, 2013;2013:604787.
    PMID: 24078922 DOI: 10.1155/2013/604787
    In the present study, we evaluated the effect of brown seaweeds Sargassum muticum methanolic extract (SMME), against MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell lines proliferation. This algae extract was also evaluated for reducing activity and total polyphenol content. The MTT assay results indicated that the extracts were cytotoxic against breast cancer cell lines in a dose-dependent manner, with IC50 of 22 μg/ml for MCF-7 and 55 μg/ml for MDA-MB-231 cell lines. The percentages of apoptotic MCF-7-treated cells increased from 13% to 67% by increasing the concentration of the SMME. The antiproliferative efficacy of this algal extract was positively correlated with the total polyphenol contents, suggesting a causal link related to extract content of phenolic acids. Cell cycle analysis showed a significant increase in the accumulation of SMME-treated cells at sub-G1 phase, indicating the induction of apoptosis by SMME. Further apoptosis induction was confirmed by Hoechst 33342 and AO/PI staining. Also SMME implanted in vivo into fertilized chicken eggs induced dose-related antiangiogenic activity in the chorioallantoic membrane (CAM). Our results imply a new insight on the novel function of Sargassum muticum polyphenol-rich seaweed in cancer research by induction of apoptosis, antioxidant, and antiangiogenesis effects.
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