ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Oncol.
Sec. Pharmacology of Anti-Cancer Drugs
A novel approach to enhance Beta sitosterol bioavailability isolated from Jurinea macrocephala (a high altitude) plant in biodegradable chitosan against lung cancer
Provisionally accepted
- 1University of Jammu, Jammu, India
- 2GMC Jammu, jammu, India
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
Introduction: Lung cancer remains a significant health challenge, often resulting in poor prognosis due to the limited availability of effective targeted therapies. Beta-sitosterol (BS), extracted from Jurinea macrocephala, possesses diverse pharmacological properties but faces limitations related to poor solubility and low bioavailability. This study aims to address these limitations by encapsulating β-sitosterol in chitosan nanoparticles, thereby enhancing its solubility, controlled and sustained release, to improve therapeutic efficacy against lung cancer with an emphasis on exploring its potential mode of cell death. Methods: Beta-sitosterol (BS) was isolated using column chromatography, with HPLC confirming its purity. The ionic crosslinking method with tripolyphosphate (TPP) was employed to formulate chitosan-based nano beta-sitosterol (BSC). Characterization of the nanoparticles was performed using FE-SEM, DLS, XRD, and FTIR. Cell-based assays, including DAPI staining, colony formation, apoptosis, and cell cycle analysis, were conducted to assess the effects of nano β-sitosterol compared to its pure form on A549 lung cancer cell lines. Results: β-sitosterol (0.6 % w/w) was isolated from J.macrocephala chloroform extract collected from the Bhaderwah region of Jammu & Kashmir. The resulting nanoparticles had an average size (190 nm), a polydispersity index (0.592), and a zeta potential (16.3 mV). The nanoparticles displayed encapsulation efficiency (76±2.19%) with a loading capacity (3.04±2.08). In vitro release studies demonstrated a sustained release of β-sitosterol over seven days. Cell-based assays indicated that nano β-sitosterol had a more prolonged and controlled effect on cell proliferation, nuclear distortion, cell cycle progression, and apoptosis in A549 cells compared to free β-sitosterol. This study is the first to compare the effects of nano β-2 sitosterol versus pure β-sitosterol on apoptosis and cell cycle progression in a time-dependent manner. Discussion: Chitosan encapsulated nano β-sitosterol demonstrated enhanced solubility, sustained release, and improved anticancer efficacy against lung cancer, highlighting its potential as a promising delivery system for lung cancer with improved therapeutic outcomes.
Keywords: Jurinea macrocephala (a high altitude) plant, β- Sitosterol, Chitosan, lung cancer, Apoptosis
Received: 04 Jul 2025; Accepted: 21 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 SANGRAL, Singh, Gupta and Bhagat. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Madhulikaa Bhagat, madhulikasbt@gmail.com
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.