Promising Potential of Crude Polysaccharides from Sparassis crispa against Colon Cancer: An In Vitro Study

The aim of the present study was to evaluate in vitro the beneficial potential of crude polysaccharides from S. crispa (CPS) in one of the most common cancer types—colon cancer. The determination of the chemical composition of CPS has revealed that it contains mostly carbohydrates, while proteins or phenolics are present only in trace amounts. (1)H NMR and GC–MS methods were used for the structural analysis of CPS. Biological activity including anticancer, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties of CPS was investigated. CPS was found to be non-toxic to normal human colon epithelial CCD841 CoN cells. Simultaneously, they destroyed membrane integrity as well as inhibited the proliferation of human colon cancer cell lines: Caco-2, LS180 and HT-29. Antioxidant activity was determined by various methods and revealed the moderate potential of CPS. The enzymatic assays revealed no influence of CPS on xanthine oxidase and the inhibition of catalase activity. Moreover, pro-inflammatory enzymes such as cyclooxygenase-2 or lipooxygenase were inhibited by CPS. Therefore, it may be suggested that S. crispa is a valuable part of the regular human diet, which may contribute to a reduction in the risk of colon cancer, and possess promising activities encouraging further studies regarding its potential use as chemopreventive and therapeutic agent in more invasive stages of this type of cancer.