Background: In the present study, we investigated the anti-angiogenic effects of the ethanol extract of Ficus carica leave on human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs).
Methods: HUVECs were used in this study. The cells were cultured in DMEM medium and then incubated with different concentrations of ethanolic extract of Ficus carica leave (0-25 μg\ml) in the presence or absence of the extract for 24 hours. Cell viability was analyzed using neutral red assay. Endothelial cell tube formation was measured with the Matrigel basement membrane matrix. The level of VEGF and Integrin β3 mRNA expression in the HUVECs was measured with reverse-transcription quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-q real time PCR).
Results: We observed that the extract dose dependently inhibited the tube formation of HUVECs. Furthermore, the extract significantly decreased mRNA expression levels of VEGF-A and Integrin β3 in HUVECs at 20 μg\ml concentration of the extract compared to untreated control cells (P < 0.05).
Conclusion: Our findings suggest that ethanolic extract of Ficus carica leave contains anti-angiogenic activities and could be a candidate as a potential agent for the prevention of angiogenesis related disorders.