In Vitro and In Vivo Antitumor Activity of a Chloroform Partition from Ibervillea sonorae (S. Watson) GreeneEndophytic Bacillus subtilis Extracts.

Cancer is a complex disease due to its high variability and resistance to conventional treatments. The search for new therapies has prompted the study of less invasive natural sources, such as endophytic bacteria from medicinal plants. Bacillus subtilis is known to produce bioactive metabolites with promising pharmacological properties. This study evaluated the antitumor activity of the endophyte B. subtilis from Ibervillea sonorae against murine L5178Y-R lymphoma cells within in vitro and in vivo models. B. subtilis methanol extract was fractionated in hexane, chloroform, and methanol, with the chloroform partition showing the highest tumor cell growth inhibition (IC(50) = 34.62 ± 0.180 µg/mL) and the highest selectivity index (SI = 15.53) when compared with the hexane and methanol partitions. The in vivo study showed that mice treated with 10 mg/kg of the chloroform partition significantly (p < 0.01) reduced the tumor volume and weight without affecting tumor-free body weight. The maximum tolerated dose test indicated that 10 mg/kg was safe and well tolerated. These results indicate that B. subtilis may be a promising source of selective antitumor compounds.