Plant based anticancerous lead identification strategy: In vivo, in vitro and in silico assessment of some potential anticancerous drugs on plant system

Plant based anticancerous lead identification strategy validated primarily by the study of the efficacy of four anticancerous drugs namely, vinblastine, methotrexate, etoposide and cisplatin on germinating grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) seedling considering attributes like mitotic index and seedling length. Seedlings are also treated with colchicine followed by drug treatments. Colchicine induces polyploid cell formation which is an attribute of cancerous cell. Furthermore, the inhibiting potentialities of the test materials are also studied in relation to callus growth. Callus formation resembles tumorigenic growth and its inhibition represents the potentiality of the drugs. Biochemical and molecular studies reveal that the modes of action of anticancerous drugs are nearly similar in plant and human system. Moreover, binding domain of the drugs has also been studied in comparison with plant species and human beings. The objective of the work is to assess the effective potentiality of some known anticancerous drugs to foresee whether plants can be used as a model for preliminary screening of several lead compounds. Plant system is cost effective and convenient to use.

Prof. Siraj Datta is the Head, Department of Biotechnology, Haldia Institute of Technology. He has completed his M.Tech from IIT-Kharagpur and Ph.D from Bose Institute, Kolkata. Dr. Aveek Samanta works with Prof. Datta to assess the efficacy of anti-cancerous drugs using plant as a model. He also teaches Botany in undergraduate courses.