The Anticancer and Antioxidant Effects of Muscadine Grape Extracts on Racially Different Triple-negative Breast Cancer Cells

BACKGROUND/AIM: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most aggressive subtype, predominant in African American women. In this study, the antioxidant/anticancer activity of muscadine grape extracts and the role of their phenolic and flavonoid contents in exerting these properties were investigated in TNBC cells. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Berry extracts from muscadine genotypes were investigated for total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), antioxidant capacity, and anticancer effects using breast cancer cell lines, representing Caucasians and African Americans. RESULTS: The antioxidant activity was associated with high TPC content. Extracts showed cytotoxicity up to 78.6% in Caucasians and 90.7% in African American cells, with an association with high antioxidant capacity. There was a strong correlation between TPC and anticancer/antioxidant activities. CONCLUSION: The anticancer and antioxidant effects of muscadine grapes are attributed to the TPC of extracts, which showed a stronger positive correlation with growth inhibition of African American breast cancer cells compared to Caucasians.