LAUSR

Plant‐derived compounds and/or extracts have proven to be beneficial for the treatment of a broad spectrum of cancers with minimal side effects. In this study, we investigated whether a crude acetone extract of Momordica balsamina (MBE) can interfere with the metastatic ability of HT‐29 colorectal cancer (CRC) cells. The phytochemical composition of MBE was determined by ultra‐performance liquid chromatography and cytotoxic effects by the MTT and acridine orange/ethidium bromide staining assays. The effect of MBE on the formation of reactive oxygen species was assessed using the DCFH2‐DA assay. Wound healing assay, transwell cell invasion assay, cell adhesion assay, and the extracellular matrix‐cell adhesion array were used to assess the antimetastatic effects of MBE. The effect of MBE on the expression of TNF‐α, NF‐κB, TIMP‐3, MMP‐2, and MMP‐9 was assessed by western blot analysis. Our results showed that MBE consists of a mixture of compounds without a known anticancer activity in CRC and exhibits cytotoxicity against HT‐29 cells. MBE also suppressed reactive oxygen species formation, cell invasion, cell migration, and cell adhesion. The reduction of cell invasion was associated with the downregulation of TNF‐α, NF‐κB, MMP2, and MMP9 and upregulation of TIMP‐3 proteins. We concluded that MBE inhibits the metastatic ability of HT‐29 CRC cells in vitro.