Cytotoxic evaluation and chemical investigation of tomatoes from plants (Solanum lycopersicum L.) grown in uncontaminated and experimentally contaminated soils

Chiara Russo; Daniela Barone; Margherita Lavorgna; Concetta Piscitelli; Marcella Macaluso; Severina Pacifico; Simona Piccolella; Antonio Giordano; Marina Isidori

doi:10.1038/s41598-022-13876-w

Cytotoxic evaluation and chemical investigation of tomatoes from plants (Solanum lycopersicum L.) grown in uncontaminated and experimentally contaminated soils

Sci Rep. 2022 Jul 29;12(1):13024. doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-13876-w.

Authors

Chiara Russo¹, Daniela Barone², Margherita Lavorgna³, Concetta Piscitelli¹, Marcella Macaluso⁴, Severina Pacifico¹, Simona Piccolella¹, Antonio Giordano⁴, Marina Isidori¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Environmental, Biological and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Via Vivaldi 43, 81100, Caserta, Italy.
² Cell Biology and Biotherapy Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori ‑ IRCCS ‑ Fondazione G. Pascale, 80131, Napoli, Italy.
³ Department of Environmental, Biological and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Via Vivaldi 43, 81100, Caserta, Italy. margherita.lavorgna@unicampania.it.
⁴ Department of Biology, College of Science and Technology, Sbarro Institute for Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the cytotoxic activity and the chemical composition of the tomato extracts coming from, Pomodoro Giallo and San Marzano Cirio 3, and then to evaluate the potential changes when plants were grown in soils contaminated by cadmium, chromium and lead. Extracts were investigated by UHPLC-HRMS and UV-Vis. Cell viability (CellTiter-Glo Luminescent assay), enzyme aldehyde dehydrogenase activity (ALDEFLOUR Assay), cell cycle progression (Accuri C6 Flow Cytometer), apoptosis and necrosis (Annexin V-FITC assay) were evaluated on two gastric cancer (AGS and NCI-N87) and two colorectal cancer (HT-29 and HCT 116) cell lines. Different content of polyphenol and carotenoid constituents was observed. Extracts from uncontaminated soil induced cytotoxic activity towards all selected cancer cells, while extracts coming from contaminated soils showed the aberrant phenotype increased in colorectal cancer cells. Chloroform extracts exerted the highest cytotoxic activity. AGS and HT-29 were the most sensitive to cell cycle arrest and to apoptosis. No necrotic effect was observed in HCT 116. The contrasting effects on cancer cells were observed based on tomato variety, the extract polarity, heavy metal identity, and tested cell line. The investigation of potential adverse health effects due to Cd in the fruits should be explored.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Colorectal Neoplasms*
Environmental Pollution
Metals, Heavy* / analysis
Soil / chemistry
Soil Pollutants* / metabolism
Solanum lycopersicum* / metabolism

Substances

Metals, Heavy
Soil
Soil Pollutants