Background: The mucus from fish and gastropods contains a wide range of bioactive molecules with biomedical
properties. The fish and gastropods were collected from Oragadam lake, Kanchipuram district, Tamil Nadu, India. In
this study, we wanted to examine the anticancer potential of fish and gastropods mucus. The biochemical components
of the crude mucus were screened.
Results: The biochemical analysis showed that the mucus of Anabas testudineus and Pila virens contained a high
level of carbohydrates (2.8 and 1.5 mg/ml), the mucus of Channa striata contained a high level of lipids (0.9 mg/ml),
and the mucus of Helix aspersa contained a high level of protein (1.3 mg/ml). The results showed morphological variations
in the HT-29 cells upon treatment with crude mucus. Upon 24 h of gestation, the frozen cells began to shrink
and seem round in shape. Using the MTT assay, the mucus crude extract was evaluated for its anticancer properties
against the human colon cancer cell line (HT 29). The inhibitory concentration (IC50) was determined at 100 μg/ml
after 24 h. Using specific staining techniques; fluorescent microscopy was utilized to examine the cell morphology
and early and late apoptotic stages. Propidium iodide staining showed nuclear damage followed by DNA damage.
This showed that the rudimentary mucus could prompt cell death and increased the number of fragments
and mucus concentration, respectively.
Conclusion: This study showed that the edible or commercially important fish and gastropod mucus have potential
anticancer activity against HT-29 cancer cells.