Background and Objectives: Amygdalin is a cyanogenic compound naturally present in apricot, peach, bitter almond, plum and apple seeds. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of amygdalin on cell survival and Malondialdehyde (MDA) level in the SK-BR-3 breast cancer cell line and to compare these effects on the healthy MRC-5 cell line.
Methods: Breast cancer cell line SK-BR-3 and healthy cell line MRC-5 were used in this study. To study the effect of amygdalin on the survival of these two cell lines and on the surface of MDA, concentrations of 2.5, 5, 10, 20, 40 and 80 mg/ml of amygdalin were used. Cell survival was assessed by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and MDA level was assessed by thiobarbituric acid and spectrophotometric method. Statistical comparison of the mean between the groups was performed using a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by a post hoc Tukey's test.
Results: Based on the results of the present study, amygdalin in a dose-dependent manner significantly reduced SK-BR-3 tumor cell survival and also significantly increased MDA levels in this cell line (P <0.05), but it there were no statistically significant effect on the normal survival of MRC-5 cells and MDA levels (P >0.05).
Conclusion: Amygdalin kills SK-BR-3 breast cancer cells by increasing the level of MDA in these cells.