Date of Publication

8-2025

Document Type

Bachelor's Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Biology major in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology

Subject Categories

Cancer Biology

College

College of Science

Department/Unit

Biology

Thesis Advisor

Ma. Luisa D. Enriquez

Defense Panel Chair

Mariquit M. Delos Reyes

Defense Panel Member

Mark Christian Felipe R. Redillas
Mark Angelo O. Balendres

Abstract (English)

Colorectal cancer is ranked third among all malignancies nationally and world-wide. Current treatments are expensive, have toxic side effects, yet fail to guarantee a cure. Thus, there is an imminent need for therapeutic alternatives that offer comparable levels of efficacy while keeping the poorest populations of the Philippines in mind. Alpinia elegans (C.Presl) K.Schum, or “tagbak”, is a well-known indigenous plant because of its deep folkloric profile. However, the medicinal properties it is heralded for, like anti-pneumonic and cytotoxicity effects, have yet to be validated. This study aims to corroborate the cytotoxicity claims by investigating the pro-apoptotic effect of A. elegans leaves and pseudostems crude extract towards an HT-29 colorectal cancer cell culture. The workflow involved the procurement of A. elegans samples, obtaining the crude extract and phytochemical profile, a PrestoBlue, and Acridine Orange/Ethidium Bromide analysis. Secondary metabolites present in both leaves and pseudostem are triterpenes, alkaloids, saponins, glycosides, and tannins. However, sterols were only present in leaves and flavonoids were only observed in the pseudostems. This difference is suspected to contribute to findings of this study where the leaves scored an IC50 of 0.0766 ppm (R2 = 0.01497) and experienced a peak in apoptotic rate at 24 hours (95.49%), significantly higher than all other experimental groups, but decreased with time. The pseudostems scored an IC50 of 73.49 ppm (R2 = 0.9513) and peaked in apoptosis at 48 hours (77.81%) after a significant increase from 24 hours. The low R2 value of the leaves present confounding results, which may be because of enzymes and other cellular debris present in a crude extract. These entities may have modified the reduction of resazurin increasing fluorescence. Nonetheless, the dual staining technique revealed crucial similarities and differences in their possible mode of action. Both leaves and pseudostems successfully created significant apoptotic rates in comparison to the negative controls (p value < 0.0001), but the leaves experienced a decrease in potency, while the pseudostems increased with time. The difference in secondary metabolite profile provides a possible basis to these temporal differences. While the sterols present in leaves prefer intrinsic and extrinsic pathways that may plateau with time, flavonoids present in pseudostems utilize gene expression regulation that needs more time before exhibiting its highest apoptotic potential. However, future research must be conducted to confidently determine the reasons behind their pro-apoptotic potential and the mechanisms of action each phytochemical A. elegans possess.

Abstract Format

html

Abstract (Filipino)

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Abstract Format

html

Language

English

Format

Electronic

Keywords

Alpinia; Metabolites; Rectum—Cancer

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Embargo Period

8-9-2025

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