Comparative study of salicylic acid contents in young wheat and rice plants and their anticancer activities in HepG2 and Caco-2 cells.

Some recent results reported that aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) had a positive effect on the treatment of certain types of cancer. However, the results cannot be generalized and it is not always clear whether it is a direct anticancer effect or a general health effect. Since plants produce different amounts of salicylic acid, we have sought a relationship between the salicylic acid content of some plant extracts and their anticancer activity. Growing of wheat and rice plants were carried out under controlled conditions. The salicylic acid content was determined by high-performance liquid chromatography. The viability and cell cycle assays were performed on HepG2 and Caco-2 cell lines. Despite the high content of salicylic acid, the extracts from rice plants did not show significant anticancer activity. In spite of the low salicylic acid content, the positive effect of wheat germ was confirmed in both tests. There is no direct relationship between the salicylic acid content of the plant extracts and their anticancer activity. However, it has been proven that young wheat germ is more effective than mature leaf.