Antitumor Activity of Dionaea Muscipula E. Preparation Carnivora® New in Vitro and in Vivo, on Animal and Human Tumors, Sensitive and Resistant to Antitumor Drugs

ABSTRACTThe pharmaceutical preparation of the carnivorous plant Dionaea muscipula E., fam. Droseraceae, has been used for a number of years empirically for cancer therapy under the name Carnivora®. The main components of Carnivora (Car) are plumbagin and hydroplumbagin-4-0-β-glucoside with immunomodulating, antitumor, antimicrobial, antiviral, antiprotozoal and other actions. In the presented studies in vitro and in vivo the antitumor activity of Carnivora on sensitive and drug-resistant animal and human tumors is further investigated. Moderate antiproliferative activity of Car is found in five tumor cell lines, sensitive to conventional antitumor drugs (human gliomas T406 and GW 27, human T-lymphoblastic leukemia CCRF-CEM, rat ovary tumor O-342 and murine sarcoma Sa 180). Antiproliferative activity is also discovered on three drug-resistant tumor cell lines (P-glycoprotein positive vincristine-resistant CCRF-CEM/Vcr and doxorubicin resistant sarcoma Sa 180/Dox and P-gly-coprotein-negative cisplatin-resis...