Antioxidant, Anti-Inflammatory, and Anticancer Activities of Ethanolic Chayote (Sechium edule) Fruit Extract: Phytochemical Insights and Therapeutic Implications

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Microbial Biotechnology, Faculty of Biotechnology, Amol University of Special Modern Technologies, Amol, Iran

2 Department of Nano Biotechnology, Faculty of Biotechnology, Amol University of Special Modern Technologies, Amol, Iran

10.22126/atic.2026.12170.1221

Abstract

Chayote (Sechium edule) is a valuable species of the Cucurbitaceae family, widely consumed in many countries due to its diverse nutritional and bio-functional properties. This study was designed to evaluate the phenolic compounds (using Folin-Ciocalteu and aluminum chloride methods), antioxidant (via DPPH assay), anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer activity (by MTT assay) of chayote fruit ethanolic extract (CFE). The results showed that the CFE contains high phenolic and flavonoid compounds with concentration-dependent and appropriate antioxidant activity. Approximately 62 ± 0.53 % of DPPH free radicals were inhibited at the 200 μg mL-1 concentration (IC50 = 35.40 μg mL-1). Also, the results of the anti-inflammatory activity indicated that CFE significantly prevents protein denaturation. The highest inhibitory effect at 800 μg mL-1 was 63.37 ± 2.14 %. Further, the CFE anticancer activity results on breast cancer cell lines (MCF-7) indicated its significant toxicity (IC50 = 42.04 μg mL-1) after 24 h. However, no significant toxicity was observed in normal mouse fibroblast cells (L929). Generally, this study demonstrates that CFE is rich in bioactive compounds with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer effects, making it a promising candidate for use in functional foods and pharmaceutical applications.

Graphical Abstract

Antioxidant, Anti-Inflammatory, and Anticancer Activities of Ethanolic Chayote (Sechium edule) Fruit Extract: Phytochemical Insights and Therapeutic Implications

Highlights

  • Herbal plants represent a rich and well-established resource in the development of novel therapeutic approaches.
  • They offer advantages such as easy accessibility, high biocompatibility, and cost-effectiveness.
  • Chayote fruit extract is abundant in bioactive compounds with demonstrated therapeutic potential.
  • The use of natural antioxidants from herbal sources can reduce dependence on synthetic preservatives.
  • Chayote extract exhibits protective effects against cellular oxidative stress.
  • Ethanol extracts of chayote fruit show promising anticancer activity, highlighting their potential in cancer therapy.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

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Agrotechniques in Industrial Crops

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 04 December 2025

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