Effect of Morinda Citrifolia Linn on Lung Cancer Promotion: Experimental Study

The Morinda citrifolia linn, is an example of a medicinal plant widely used by the population. Our study aims to investigate the therapeutic effect of Noni on the experimental lung cancer. To this purpose, 40 male Balb/c mice were divided into two groups: 20 animals in the control group and 20 in the Noni group, all of which were induced to lung carcinogenesis with intraperitoneal urethane. For the experiment, the animals were offered 250 ml of 50% Noni juice until the treatment was completed after 90 days. The animals of the control group were responsible for the largest number of histological alterations. It was observed that 68% of the animals in the control group presented some histological alteration classified in: 9 (69,2%) of the animals presented pneumonia, 1 (14,28%) presented pulmonary nodule, while in the Noni group, the prevalence of pulmonary nodules represented 100% of the animals with histological changes. When comparing the study groups, statistical differences were identified in the variables “pneumonia” and “presence of pulmonary nodule”, representing p=0.030 and p=0.048, respectively. The concentrated juice of Morinda citrifolia linn can act as a lung cancer promoter, emphasizing its function in cell proliferation, antibiotic and antiinflammatory action.