Anticancer potentiality of Hottentotta saulcyi scorpion curd venom against breast cancer: an in vitro and in vivo study

• Published in: Scientific reports 2024-10, Vol.14 (1), p.24607-19, Article 24607
• Main Authors: Nosouhian, Mahshid, Rastegari, Ali Asghar, Shahanipour, Kahin, Ahadi, Ali Mohammad, Sajjadieh, Mohammadreza Sheikh
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 631/1647; 631/45; 631/61; 631/67; Animal models; Animals; Animals, Poisonous; Anticancer; Antineoplastic Agents - pharmacology; Apoptosis; Apoptosis - drug effects; Bcl-2 protein; Breast cancer; Breast carcinoma; Breast Neoplasms - drug therapy; Breast Neoplasms - pathology; Caspase; Cell culture; Cell Line, Tumor; Cell Survival - drug effects; Cytotoxicity; Electrical stimuli; Female; Flow cytometry; Fluorescence microscopy; Hottentotta saulcyi; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Lethal dose; MCF-7; MCF-7 Cells; Mice; Mouse model; multidisciplinary; Physical characteristics; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Scorpion Venoms - pharmacology; Scorpions; Statistical analysis; Transforming growth factor-b; Tumor necrosis factor-α; Venom
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-75183-w

Scorpion venom may include pharmacological substances that have the potential to provide benefits. Multiple scientific investigations have shown that particular scorpion venoms induce apoptosis and inhibit the development of cancerous cells. The present study investigated the potential anticancer properties of the crude venom derived from Hottentotta saulcyi ( H. saulcyi ) on both in vivo mice models and in vitro breast carcinoma cells. The venom of scorpions belonging to the species H. saulcyi was obtained with the application of electrical stimulation at voltages of 8 and 10 V. The determination of the Average Lethal Dose 50 (LD 50 ) was conducted. The present work assessed the in vitro cytotoxicity and morphological characteristics of H. saulcyi venom using fluorescence microscopy, MTT assay, and flow cytometry assessment. Additionally, research was performed to assess the cytotoxic effects in vivo on a mouse model with breast cancer. The examination of MCF-7 cells treated with scorpion venom at a microscopic level revealed the existence of cells undergoing apoptosis. The venom of H. saulcyi has anticancer properties, as shown by the observation that MCF-7 cells had a 62.12% apoptotic rate when exposed to a dose of 1.47 mg/L. Based on the results obtained, it can be shown that the viability of MCF-7 cells has exhibited a substantial reduction ( P