Effects of ginger on total oxidant and antioxydant levels (TOS/TAS) in colon cancer cells

Colon cancer is a type of cancer that arises from the uncontrolled growth of colorectal cells. Phenolic compounds have different effects on cancer cells such as cell viability, oxidative stress and gene expression. The aim of this thesis study was to investigate the effects of ginger on cell viability and oxidative stress parameters in colon cancer cells. In this study designed as an in vitro cell culture study, colorectal cancer cell line Caco-2 was used. To determine the cytotoxicity, 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2 il)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) cell viability test was performed and the half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of ginger was calculated as 39,386 ppm. In the second part of the study, colon cancer cells were exposed to 1/10 (3.94 ppm) and 1/100 (0.39 ppm) concentrations of IC50 value for 24 hours in order to investigate the oxidative stress effects of ginger on colon cancer cells. Total antioxidant level (TAS), total oxidant level (TOS) and oxidative stress index (OSI), which are ratios of each other, were calculated. After evaluating the levels of antioxidants and total oxidants measured in the study, the difference between the groups treated with concentrations of ginger and the control group proved to be statistically significant (P<0.05). The level of total antioxidants (TAS) was significantly lower in the group receiving 0.39 ppm ginger than in the control group. However, the level of total oxidants was higher in the group receiving 3.94 ppm ginger [0.16 µM H2O2/L] than in the control group [0.11 µM H2O2/L]. The level of oxidative stress was reduced in the ginger-treated cells compared with the control group. As a result, ginger extract was found to inhibit cell proliferation and induce cell death. In conclusion, ginger extract was found to inhibit cell proliferation and cause cell death. This study shows that ginger has an effect on the levels of TAS, TOS and OSI in colon cancer cells, but more further and comprehensive studies are required.