## 6 Pharmacological Properties of _Apium_ Plants
### Anticancer Activities of Apium Plants
This purified peptide could possess synergistic antioxidant potential with the other antioxidants, thus, leading to anticancer activity in the fraction of celery extracts [169]. In many in vivo studies, it was shown that perillyl alcohol causes regression of tumors of the pancreas, liver, and breast. Celery seed was injected in wistar rats in the laboratory and had an inhibitive effect on liver carcinoma. A protective effect on the gastric mucosa and it is anti-gastric ulcer was also discovered [119]. _A. gravelens_ extract induces apoptosis via Bax and p-53 proteins in the LNCaP human prostate cancer cell line [170]. [PERSON] et al. investigated the potential activity of four polyacetylenes against leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma cell lines. All the polyacetylenes with falcarinol showed at least moderate toxicity to all cell lines. Falcarinol was the most active compound of _Apium_ plants and showed significant cytotoxicity against acute lymphoblastic leukemia cell line CEM-C7H2 [157]. [PERSON] et al. reportedthat the polyacetylene falcarinol also showed protective activity against chemically-induced colon cancer development in rats. These compounds of _Apium_ plants had a biphasic effect on CaCo-2 cells, with antiproliferative effects at high doses [171]. In addition, the biphasic responses of bioactive polyacetylenes, falcarinol, and falcarindoli on the stress responses in primary myotube cultures were also reported. Preincubation with low concentrations of both polyacetylenes prior to H\({}_{2}\)O\({}_{2}\) exposure induced a cytoprotective effect, whereas, higher concentrations had adverse effects [171]. In previous studies, [PERSON] et al. reported that phthalides, such as sedanolide and 3-_n_-butylphthalide, have been shown to possess anticarcinogenic and neuroprotective properties. According to the findings, 3-_n_-butylphthalide inhibits platelet aggregation, reduces neuron apoptosis, improves mitochondrial function, and decreases oxidative damage. These compounds are officially approved for the treatment of stroke patients in China [172]. The efficiency of the protection is very high and quite fast, and also leads to restoration of normal levels of glutathione, ascorbic acid, and glycogen, as well as no increase of the levels of SGOT, SGPT, ALP (liver marker enzymes) and total bilirubin. In this case, one group of seven rats was used as a control, and received only the vehicle for administration, i.e., corn oil. The same protective effect has been observed with the same experimental conditions against other hepatotoxicants [152; 168], thus providing this species effective as hepatoprotective. In both these cases, a group of rats was used as control and received the vehicle for administration only. Moreover, in 2011, [PERSON] et al. discovered that the daily consumption of the fresh leaves and stalks of _A. gravelens_ in rabbits that were affected with tumor and already treated with doxorubicin, was able to diminish the severe side effects linked to the assumption of this drug [173]. In fact, doxorubicin (an anthracyline antibiotic) exhibits a high anticancer activity against a broad series of cancer types, i.e., ovarian, breast, lung, uterine, cervical, and soft tissue cancers [174; 175] but is also known to have important toxicities, even causing cardiac, hepatic, and hematological damage [176; 177]. This interaction was seen at a concentration of 7.5 mg/kg/day per 14 days after comparison with data obtained from the control group that received only 5 mL/kg of 0.9% NaCl solution intraperitoneally four times in 14 days and it was observed to be very effective, acting through an antioxidant pathway [173]. _A. gravelens_ is also one of the three ingredients of HESA-A, an herbal-marine mixture of plant species. This mixture has been shown to have a high antitumor effect on human patients with end-stage metastatic colon cancer after six months of therapy with a great contribution due to _A. gravelens_ itself.