investigating the effects of royal jelly-derived exosomes on the proliferation of mcf7 breast cancer cells

Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer worldwide, accounting for 25% of all cancers and 15% of cancer-related deaths1. traditional treatments, including surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, face challenges such as limited efficacy and tumor resistance. consequently, identifying new biomarkers and therapeutic targets is crucial to enhancing treatment outcomes3. recent researches have highlighted the potential anti-cancer properties of royal jelly (rj), a natural substance produced by honeybees. rj has been shown to increase apoptosis and inhibit cancer cell proliferation. in animal models, rj also modulates chemokine production, antioxidants, and cancer-related molecules, potentially improving prognosis and reducing treatment side effects. moreover, extracellular vesicles such as exosomes found in rj may contribute to these therapeutic effects. exosomes were isolated from rj using the exocib® exosome purification kit (cibbiotech–iran). their size was measured by dynamic light scattering (dls), and protein content was quantified using the bradford assay. the cytotoxic effects of rj-derived exosomes (rjexo) on mcf-7 breast cancer cells were evaluated using the mtt assay at different concentrations ranging from 0 to 8000 µg/ml.dls analysis showed the average size of rjexo to be 115.5 nm, with a protein concentration of 24 mg/ml. the mtt assay revealed that rjexo significantly reduced (p < 0.05) mcf-7 cell viability in a dose-dependent manner after 24 hours of incubation so that it reached 44% in the concentration of 8000 µg/ml . these findings suggest that rjexo may offer potential as a novel therapeutic approach in breast cancer treatment, warranting further investigation.