The College of Pharmacy discussed the MSc thesis entitled “Phytochemical investigations of some active constituents for Gazania rigens (L.) Gaertn. Leaves (Asteraceae family) cultivated in Iraq” by the student Hayder Ahmed Jawad and the supervisor, Professor. Dr. Enas Jawad Kadhim, at the Pharmacognosy and Medicinal Plants Department. The study aimed to analyze the phytochemical composition of Gazania rigens cultivated in Iraq and assess the anti-cancer effect of its n-hexane and n-butanol fractions against two types of cancer cell lines (MCF-7 breast cancer cell line and HRT-18 colon cancer cell line). This research is the first to be conducted on this cultivated Iraqi species. The study included extraction using a Soxhlet apparatus with 85% aqueous ethanol after defatting with n-hexane. Fractionation was then performed using solvents of different polarities (n-hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, and n-butanol). The identification of various active constituents was conducted through chemical tests, thin-layer chromatography (TLC), high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) for the n-hexane fraction. Additionally, compounds were isolated by techniques such as high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and preparative thin-layer chromatography (prepTLC). While TLC, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), the spiking method, and liquid chromatography-mass/mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) techniques were performed for characterization. The anti-cancer activity was assessed by examining the effects of the n-hexane fraction (F1) and n-butanol fraction (F4) on MCF-7 and HRT-18 cancer cell lines by calculating the half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) and cytotoxicity percentage using the MTT assay. The study concluded / the results showed that the presence and isolation of bioactive compounds, including (Lupeol, β-Sitosterol, Caffeic acid, Chlorogenic acid, and Luteolin), were confirmed. Additionally, the IC50 values demonstrated the anti-cancer potential of the fractions, with F1 showing IC50 values of 121.2 µg/ml for MCF-7 and 102.2 µg/ml for HRT-18, while F4 exhibited IC50 values of 231.7 µg/ml for MCF-7 and 148.5 µg/ml for HRT-18. The study recommended further investigation of Iraqi Gazania rigens, a natural source rich in phytochemicals, to explore its pharmacological activities and pharmaceutical applications.
