25/05/2025
QUEZON CITY SCIENCE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS DISCOVER BREAST CANCER-FIGHTING COMPOUNDS IN CASSAVA LEAVES
A group of Grade 9 student-researchers from Quezon City Science High School has made a groundbreaking discovery: compounds found in cassava leaves show promising potential in targeting and eliminating breast cancer cells while leaving healthy cells largely unharmed. The study, led by Gabrielle Shinyo, Emmanuelle Reign Tica, and Bryce Ethan Cruz, identified active compounds such as Ephedradine A and (25R)-Spirostan-3,12-dione through a combination of laboratory-based (in-vitro) and computer-simulated (in-silico) testing.
“We discovered that it took 4.6 times more extract to kill normal cells than breast cancer cells. So, that means that although our extract is crude, meaning not really purified, it can somehow discriminate between what cells are healthy and what cells are not,” explained Shinyo, highlighting the extract's selective toxicity.
Using MTT assay methods, the team tested cassava leaf extracts on MCF-7 breast cancer cells and found significant anticancer activity. Further analysis through in-silico simulations showed that these compounds could bind effectively to cancer-related proteins such as Estrogen Receptor 5U2B, effectively blocking signals that allow tumors to grow and spread.
Inspired by previous research on cassava’s medicinal properties, the students dried, pulverized, and macerated the leaves in various solvents to isolate the compounds. Their paper was reviewed and approved by doctors from the National Kidney and Transplant Institute.
The team’s findings were presented at the prestigious American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2025 in Chicago, Illinois—an international recognition of their scientific potential.
“Hopefully, in the future, this study can be sort of a starting point that could pave the way for a better, safer, and cheaper cancer treatment,” said Tica, expressing the group’s hope for wider clinical applications of their work.
