Research has found that the stems and leaves of the native ginseng have good anti-cancer effects
A study published in BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies revealed the significant inhibitory effect of sweet potato leaf and stem extracts on breast cancer and lung cancer cells, endowing this plant with new medical value.
This study focuses on two sweet potato varieties: the "All Purple" sweet potato with deep purple leaves and the "Carolina Ruby" sweet potato with a bright red color.
Researchers extracted the leaves and stems of these two varieties with methanol to obtain high-concentration plant extracts, which were then applied to breast cancer BT549 cells and lung cancer A549 cells respectively to observe their anti-cancer effects.
It was found that both extracts inhibited the proliferation of cancer cells in a dose-dependent manner.
Among them, the "all-purple" sweet potato leaf extract demonstrated an extremely strong inhibitory effect on breast cancer cells, with a semi-maximum effect concentration (EC₅₀) of only 0.002 micrograms per microliter, indicating its stronger selectivity for breast cancer cells.
However, the inhibitory effect of the same extract on lung cancer A549 cells was slightly inferior, with an EC₅₀ of 0.013 micrograms per microliter.
However, the stem and leaf extract of "Carolena Ruby" has a more significant killing effect on lung cancer cells, with EC₅₀ as low as 0.0014 micrograms per microliter. When the concentration is increased to 5.6mg/L, the inhibition rate is as high as 96.07%, even slightly better than the widely used anti-breast cancer drug tamoxifen (inhibition rate 95.11%).
More interestingly, this inhibitory effect exhibits a distinct "targeting characteristic", which is reflected in the different affinities of various sweet potato varieties to different cancer cells.
Among them, the "All Purple" variety is more lethal to breast cancer cells, while "Carolina Ruby" is better at inhibiting lung cancer cells.
This difference may be related to the rich and diverse bioactive components in the two varieties, such as polyphenols, flavonoids and other natural antioxidants, which are usually closely associated with anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer effects.
Of course, although cell experiments have demonstrated good anti-tumor potential, more animal experiments and clinical studies are still needed to verify the safety and efficacy of sweet potato leaf extract.
In the future, by integrating modern pharmaceutical technology, sweet potato leaves may become a new green weapon for cancer prevention and treatment.
