Toxicity test of flavonoid compounds from the leaves of Dendrophthoe pentandra (L.) Miq. using in vitro culture cell models

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The flavonoids from mistletoe are thought to have antimicrobial action. This encouraging finding supports the benefits of medicinal plants as a substitute for synthetic antimicrobials, thus promoting healthy lifestyles. In contrast, it is known that the use of topical drug formulations made from flavonoids of mistletoe (Dendrophthoe pentandra (L.) Miq. Loranthaceae) with Indonesian name, Benalu duku (BD) is required in skin cell irritation. This study aimed to assess the toxic effects of the flavonoid substances of BD, as an initial screening. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A myeloma cell line was cultured in Roswell Park Memorial Institute medium, and the Baby Hamster Kidney clone 12 (BHK(21)) cell line was cultured in Dulbecco’s Modified Eagle’s Medium from stock (±9 × 10(7) cells/mL), and 1.2 mL of culture were distributed into each well of a microtiter plate. Subsequently, 0.2 mL of serially diluted flavonoid compounds (0.5–3 μg/mL) were added to 12 wells for each concentration, as trial groups (including control groups), followed by a 2-day incubation. Observations were performed based on the cytopathic effect (CPE) using an inverted microscope at a magnification of 100×. RESULTS: Cytopathic effect was detected on the microtiter plate wells for the groups of myeloma and BHK(21) cells at a flavonoid concentration of 0.5 μg/mL–3 μg/mL. CONCLUSION: Flavonoid compounds from BD were safely used for topical treatment of cancer cells at a concentration <2.491 μg/mL, whereas for non-cancerous cells, a concentration <2.582 μg/mL was sufficient (p < 0.05).