Abstract
BACKGROUND: Natural compounds can regulate the growth and progression of cancer cells with low toxicity to normal cell; therefore, these compounds are unique targets for cancer treatment. Recently, extracts from Salvia species have shown promising antiproliferative potential. This study aimed to isolate and characterize bioactive compounds from Salvia aegyptiaca and evaluate their antioxidant, cytotoxic, and protease-inhibitory activities. METHODS: In this study, various extracts of S. aegyptiaca were prepared, and several compounds, including ursolic acid, oleanolic acid, luteolin-7-O-glucoside, quercetin-3-O-rutoside, and rosmarinic acid, were isolated and characterized using different spectroscopic methods. Finally, the antioxidant activity, protease inhibitory activity, and cytotoxicity of the crude extract, multiple fractions, and isolated compounds were examined. RESULTS: According to the results obtained, rosmarinic acid demonstrated the highest antioxidant performance, as indicated by the following assays: DPPH (IC50: 28.39 ± 0.75 µg/mL), ABTS (39.52 ± 0.72 µg/mL), FRAP (31.87 ± 0.67 µg/mL), NO scavenging (71.44 ± 1.04 µg/mL), and ORAC values (0.6 TE/mg). Furthermore, both cynaroside and rosmarinic acid exhibited the most potent antiproliferative effects against the Hep G2 cell line, with IC50 value of 34.4 ± 2.34 and 47.84 ± 5.87 µg/mL, respectively. The EtOAc fraction and rosmarinic acid also showed higher protease inhibitory activity, with IC50 of 17.6 ± 0.10 and 17.0 ± 0.30 µg/mL, respectively, as compared to other compounds. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that the identified compounds may be responsible for the antiproliferative effects of S. aegyptiaca. Overall, S. aegyptiaca could serve as a valuable natural antioxidant and anticancer agent in both pharmaceutical and food industries