ANTIOXIDANT AND CYTOTOXIC POTENTIAL OF CHRYSANTHEMUM MORIFOLIUM AND CONVOLVULUS ARVENSIS EXTRACTS: A PROMISING SOURCE OF BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS FOR MEDICINAL APPLICATIONS

In this research, acetone extracts from the plants Chrysanthemum morifolium (C. morifolium) and Convolvulus arvensis (C. arvensis) were tested for their antioxidant and cytotoxic properties. Total phenolic content (TPC) and total flavonoid content (TFC) analyses of these extracts revealed considerable phenolic and flavonoid component concentrations. Both extracts demonstrated significant antioxidant activity as determined by the DPPH and FRAP tests, and their low IC₅₀ values suggested that they were capable of effectively scavenging free radicals. Numerous bioactive substances, including n-hexadecanoic acid and ç-Sitosterol in C. arvensis and Lupeol and α-Amyrin in C. morifolium, were discovered in each extract by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. These results point to the medicinal benefits associated with these plant extracts.  Furthermore, cytotoxicity assessments were performed on breast cancer (MCF-7) cell lines, lung cancer (A549), and hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2). C. arvensis extract demonstrated strong cytotoxicity versus all three cell-lines, alongside IC₅₀ values varying from 7.10 µg/mL to 12.63 µg/mL. C. morifolium extract also displayed cytotoxic effects, with IC values of 51.57 µg/mL, > 100 µg/mL, and 107.10 µg/mL for the respective cell lines. These results highlight the potential of C. morifolium and C. arvensis extracts as sources of bioactive substances with cytotoxic and antioxidant activities. Suggesting their utility in the development of novel pharmaceuticals, particularly in the context of cancer treatment. This research highlights the importance of medicinal plants in the quest for new therapeutic agents.