Artemisia herba-alba, known also as common wormwood, white wormwood, or simply herba alba. (Credit: Nahhana on Shutterstock)

SHARJAH, United Arab Emirates — A common aromatic shrub that has served as traditional medicine for centuries could point the way toward innovative treatments for colorectal cancer, according to scientists from the University of Sharjah.

Artemisia herba-alba, known variously as common wormwood, white wormwood, or simply herba alba, grows naturally throughout North Africa and the Middle East. Local populations have long used this hardy desert plant to treat various ailments including bronchitis, diarrhea, hypertension, and diabetes. Now, scientists have discovered it harbors compounds that could help fight one of the world’s deadliest cancers.

“Colorectal cancer is a common and serious illness, making it essential to find new and better treatments,” explains Dr. Lara Bou Malhab, lead author and research associate at Sharjah’s Research Institute for Medical and Health Sciences, in a statement. This need is particularly urgent given that colorectal cancer ranks as the third most common cancer worldwide, accounting for nearly 10% of all cancer cases and standing as the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths. In 2020 alone, the disease claimed one million lives while doctors diagnosed two million new cases.

The research team’s findings, published in Food Science & Nutrition, reveal that extracts from this unassuming plant can effectively target and kill colorectal cancer cells through multiple mechanisms while appearing to leave healthy cells relatively unharmed. This selective targeting ability particularly excites researchers because current chemotherapy treatments often struggle with both drug resistance and severe side effects.

To conduct their investigation, researchers carefully collected aerial parts of Artemisia herba-alba from southern Jordan in May 2021. Professor M. Hudaib, an expert in Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry at the University of Jordan’s School of Pharmacy, supervised the precise botanical identification of these specimens. The team then followed a meticulous preparation process, air-drying the plant material at room temperature while protecting it from direct sunlight to preserve its sensitive components.

“This preliminary step was done to enhance the effectiveness of the next extraction process, guaranteeing the highest possible amount of the extracted phytochemicals,” the researchers note in their paper. They ground the dried plant into an extremely fine powder with particles no larger than 0.5 millimeters before creating a methanol-based extract for testing.

Using sophisticated analytical techniques, the team identified several bioactive compounds within the plant known for their cancer-fighting properties, including ephedrine, hydroxyflavone, and quinolinic acid. Each of these compounds appears to attack cancer cells through different mechanisms, creating a multi-pronged assault on the disease.

“It also disrupted the cell cycle and reduced the activity of proteins like Cyclin B1 and CDK1, which are crucial for cancer cell division,” adds Dr. Bou Malhab. “Additionally, it blocked the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway, which plays a major role in cancer development.”

The researchers tested the extract against eight different types of colorectal cancer cells, representing various genetic profiles including some with and without the crucial p53 tumor suppressor gene. This comprehensive approach allowed them to evaluate how the treatment might work across different forms of the disease.

Perhaps most remarkably, the plant extract demonstrated an ability to trigger programmed cell death in cancer cells regardless of their genetic makeup. This finding proves particularly significant because it suggests the treatment could potentially work even against more aggressive forms of colorectal cancer that have lost important tumor-suppressing genes.

Two cancer cell lines showed complete resistance to the treatment, highlighting that while promising, Artemisia herba-alba likely would work best as part of a targeted treatment strategy rather than a universal solution. This aligns with the growing understanding that cancer treatment often requires personalized approaches.

“These results suggest that Artemisia herba-alba has great potential as a new tool in fighting CRC,” says Dr. Bou Malhab. “Artemisia herba-alba could be a promising natural ingredient for new cancer treatments based on our findings.”

The research could prove especially significant for pharmaceutical development, as current chemotherapy treatments often face challenges with drug resistance and harmful side effects. As the researchers conclude their study, they emphasize the need for further investigation “to elucidate the molecular mechanisms and clinical efficacy of Artemisia herba-alba in the context of cancer treatment.”