Chemical composition and anticancer effects of Zingiber officinale volatile oil

Abstract

Zingiber officinale rhizome is used in ethnomedicine in treating tumor-related ailments. This study was undertaken to evaluate the cytotoxic effects of this plant. The oil was extracted using a Clavenger apparatus by hydro-distillation method. Preliminary screening was carried out with brine shrimp cytotoxicity test at 10-1000 µg/mL. The volatile oil was further tested on breast cancer (AU 565) and cervical cancer (HeLa) at 50 µg /mL using MTT assay and later subjected to GCMS analysis. LC₅₀ of 157.75 µg/mL was obtained in the brine shrimp mortality assay. Z. officinale oil showed high anticancer activities with 50 and 43 % inhibitions against HeLa and AU 565 cells respectively. GCMS analysis revealed the major constituents of Z. officinale oil as a-citral (11.68 %) and a-citral (10.18 %). These results suggest the medicinal potency of this plant oil.