Evaluation of potential anti-metastatic and antioxidative abilities of natural peptides derived from Tecoma stans (L.) Juss. ex Kunth in A549 cells

BACKGROUND: Tecoma stans (L.) Juss. ex Kunth is a well-known medicinal plant found in tropical and subtropical regions. It contains a broad range of bioactive compounds that exhibit many biological effects, including antidiabetic, antibacterial, and antioxidative activities. However, the effect of natural peptides from T. stans against cancer progression and free radical production is unknown. This study aims to evaluate the cytotoxic, anti-metastatic, and antioxidative activities of natural peptides from T. stans on A549 cells. METHODS: The natural peptides were extracted from the flower of T. stans using the pressurized hot water extraction (PHWE) method, followed by size exclusion chromatography and solid-phase extraction-C18. The cytotoxic and anti-metastatic effects of natural peptides were evaluated using MTT and transwell chamber assays, respectively. The free radical scavenging activity of natural peptides was determined using ABTS, DPPH, and FRAP assays. The cells were pretreated with the IC(50) dosage of natural peptides and stimulated with LPS before analyzing intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) and proteomics. RESULTS: Natural peptides induced cell toxicity at a concentration of less than 1 ng/ml and markedly reduced cell motility of A549 cells. The cells had a migration rate of less than 10% and lost their invasion ability in the treatment condition. In addition, natural peptides showed free radical scavenging activity similar to standard antioxidants and significantly decreased intracellular ROS in the LPS-induced cells. Proteomic analysis revealed 1,604 differentially expressed proteins. The self-organizing tree algorithm (SOTA) clustered the protein abundances into eleven groups. The volcano plot revealed that the cancer-promoting proteins (NCBP2, AMD, MER34, ENC1, and COA4) were down-regulated, while the secretory glycoprotein (A1BG) and ROS-reducing protein (ASB6) were up-regulated in the treatment group. CONCLUSION: The anti-proliferative and anti-metastatic activities of natural peptides may be attributed to the suppression of several cancer-promoting proteins. In contrast, their antioxidative activity may result from the up-regulation of ROS-reducing protein. This finding suggests that natural peptides from T. stans are viable for being the new potential anti-cancer and antioxidative agents.