Biological Activities of Halodule uninervis Ethanolic Extract

Abstract

Herbal medicine has been gaining special interest as an alternative treatment for various diseases, with plant-derived compounds showing promising antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer activities due to their diverse bioactive metabolites and unique characteristics. Halodule uninervis, a seagrass from the family Cymodoceaceae, is known for its rich array of bioactive metabolites that provide it with a range of pharmacological properties. However, some biological activities of H. uninervis remain unexplored. This work investigates, for the first time, the anticancer activity of H. uninervis ethanolic extract (HUE) against triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), its anti-inflammatory effect on macrophages, and its potential use in the green synthesis of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). Our results indicated that HUE is rich in diverse bioactive metabolites with significant antioxidant and anticancer properties. In the MDA-MB-231 TNBC cell line, HUE targeted key cancer processes such as cell proliferation, adhesion, migration, invasion, and angiogenesis. We found that HUE-mediated anti-proliferative and anti-metastatic effects were associated with the inhibition of the proto-oncogenic STAT3 signaling pathway. Additionally, HUE inhibited the inflammatory response in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages by decreasing the expression of pro-inflammatory enzymes (iNOS and COX-2) and cytokines (IL-6 and TNF-α). The anti-inflammatory potential of HUE was associated with the suppression of NF-kB, STAT3, and p38 MAPK pathways. Finally, HUE was successfully used for biosynthesis of AuNPs. Characterization of the biogenic AuNPs revealed the formation of small, spherical nanoparticles, which are crystalline in nature and stable at high temperatures. These AuNPs exhibited potential anticancer activity against MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell line by inducing apoptosis. Taken together, our results highlight the potential of HUE as a valuable source for developing novel therapeutic agents with anticancer and anti-inflammatory activities.