Cytotoxic, antimicrobial and nitric oxide inhibitory activities of supercritical carbon dioxide extracted Prunus persica leaves

Different parts of Prunus persica as fruits, flowers, leaves and kernels have been consumed with dietary and therapeutic purposes traditionally. During fruit production, remarkable amount of leaves which can hold important bioactive groups as phenolics, have been left unutilized. The aim of this study was to investigate cytotoxic, antimicrobial and nitric oxide inhibitory activities of supercritical carbondioxide extracts of Prunus persica leaves. Among studied cell lines, supercritical carbon dioxide extract which was processed at 150 bar, 60 °C, and 6% co-solvent ethanol, exhibited remarkable cytotoxic activity against HeLa, MPanc-96 and MCF-7 cell lines with IC50 values of 12.22 µg/ml, 28.17 µg/ml and 35.51 µg/ml respectively, whereas IC50 value of conventional solvent extract was above 50 µg/ml. Minimum inhibitory concentration values determined for antibacterial and antifungal activities against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Enterococcus faecalis, Enterococcus faecium and Candida albicans were found as 62.50 µg/ml. Strong nitric oxide inhibition was achieved with IC50 of 9.30 µg/ml. The promising results revealed that Prunus persica leaves may have remarkable potential as supplement both for drug and food industries. This study is the first report revealing cytotoxic, antimicrobial and nitric oxide inhibitory activity of supercritical carbon dioxide extract of Prunus persica leaves.