South Asian Research Journal of Biology and Applied Biosciences (SARJBAB)
Volume-8 | Issue-05
Original Research Article
In vitro Cytotoxicity and In silico Screening Evaluation of Clitoria ternatea L. Flower Methanolic Extract against Cancer Cell Lines
Sukaina Abbas, Tejashree V. Shanbhag
Published : Oct. 26, 2026
Abstract
Clitoria ternatea L. (Fabaceae) flowers are used widely in traditional medicine and are rich in anthocyanins. The methanolic extract of this flower was screened for phytochemical classes, profiled by GC-MS, and tested by MTT assay against HeLa, MCF-7, and A549 cells. Ten GC-MS-identified compounds were carried forward for ADMET prediction (ADMETlab 3.0) and molecular docking (AutoDock Vina) against six targets: EGFR (1M17), estrogen receptor α (3ERT), MDM2 (4HFZ), a Bcl-2/Bcl-xL chimera (2W3L), tubulin at the colchicine site (1SA0), and KRAS G12S (7TLG). Protein–ligand interactions were profiled with PLIP. The extract reduced viability in a concentration-dependent manner in all three lines, with IC50 values of 66.94 µg/mL (HeLa), 146.48 µg/mL (MCF-7), and 372.32 µg/mL (A549). HeLa cells were the most sensitive and A549 was the least sensitive cell line. Palmitic acid had the strongest support of evidence: published caspase-3-mediated cytotoxicity, the lowest predicted mutagenicity of the ten compounds, and salt-bridge interactions at two of the six targets. DDMP built the most specific hydrogen-bond network, at EGFR, though its predicted mutagenicity and carcinogenicity were both elevated. Overall, the extract shows cell-line-dependent cytotoxicity.